In a moment when MLB held its breath, Detroit Tigers pitching machine Tarik Skubal officially created one of the greatest chapters in modern baseball history. Not only did he win Back-to-Back AL Cy Young, but he was also named to the All-MLB First Team Starting Pitcher for the second consecutive year. But what shocked all of us was not the accolades – it was the moment Skubal stood before the media, choking up to talk about the journey of vulnerability, faith, and perseverance that brought him to the top.
“I thought I would never pitch again…,” Skubal said, his eyes red, and the atmosphere in the press room seemed to be hushed.
“But I never stopped believing in myself – even when the whole world thought I should quit.”
Few people forget the period when Skubal had to fight injuries, with the lonely months of recovery, when his future was in doubt. At that time, he was not the Tigers’ No. 1 star, not a Cy Young candidate, but just a young player trying to keep himself from being swallowed by the harshness of MLB.
He said there were days when no one believed he could reach All-MLB level, or even return to average. But it was in that skepticism that Skubal found inner strength:
“You have to be the first person to believe in yourself, before anyone else does. That belief pulled me out of the darkest days.”
Back on the field, Skubal didn’t just resurrect—he exploded. The numbers that dominated the league, the games where opponents were desperate for every pitch he threw, all led to a historic season. And then, his first Cy Young. A moment that seemed impossible.
But this year, Skubal did the unspeakable: he defended his Cy Young title, proving that he wasn’t just a “blip” in the pan, but a true star of a new generation.
He was named to the All-MLB First Team for the second time.
When asked about his thoughts on that thorny journey, Skubal paused for a few seconds. Then he spoke—slowly, but each word seemed to pierce the hearts of those listening:
“I remember nights when I wondered if I was good enough. I remember mornings when I woke up with pain. But I promised myself: someday, I would tell this story from the top… and today I did.”
He choked, wiping the corners of his eyes.
“I owe it to the people who believed in me—and the people who didn’t. Because they made me the strong person I am today.”
Skubal is now more than just the face of the Tigers. He is a symbol of resilience. A living testament that belief is sometimes stronger than any injury, any statistic, any doubt.
Back-to-Back AL Cy Young.
Back-to-Back All-MLB First Team.
And a heart that never gives up.
In an MLB full of superstars hailed from a very young age, Tarik Skubal is a human story of a comeback: a guy who wasn’t born at the finish line, but wrote his own legend with willpower and belief.
Today, the world calls him the Cy Young champion for the second year in a row.
But for those who understand the story behind it, Tarik Skubal is something else – an inspiration, a reminder that: “If you believe in yourself long enough, one day you will make the world believe in you.”
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