TODAY: Mahtook cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Triple-A, the Tigers announced.
THURSDAY: The Tigers announced this morning that they’ve designated outfielder Mikie Mahtook for assignment. His spot on the 25-man roster will go to fellow outfielder JaCoby Jones, who has been reinstated after opening the season on the injured list due to a shoulder sprain.
Mahtook, 29, had a promising first year with the Tigers in 2017 after being acquired in a minor trade with the Rays in the preceding offseason. The 2011 first-round pick slashed .276/.330/.457 with a dozen homers in 379 plate appearances and gave the organization some hope that he could be a useful pieces for years to come, given the amount of club control he had remaining.
Unfortunately, Mahtook’s production cratered in 2018 as his strikeout rate soared north of 26 percent while the .324 BABIP he turned in a year prior cratered to a career-low .238. Mahtook saw his hard-contact and line-drive rates both decline, while he hit infield pop-ups at a career-worst clip as well.
Things haven’t gone better for Mahtook in the early stages of the 2019 campaign, either. He’s hitless through 25 plate appearances, including 11 strikeouts, and a recent misplay in center field turned a routine Eric Stamets single into a little league homer.
Detroit will have a week to either trade Mahtook or run him through outright waivers, at which point he’d remain under organizational control should the team wish to assign him to a minor league affiliate. Mahtook has never been previously outrighted and doesn’t have the requisite three years of big league service to reject an outright assignment, so electing free agency wouldn’t be an option for him.
Mahtook’s DFA means that Jones can be penciled in for everyday at-bats in center field, while former Padres and Braves prospect Dustin Peterson, whom Detroit claimed off waivers last September, will stick on the big league roster as the primary reserve outfielder for the time being. That’ll leave Detroit without a true backup center fielder; Peterson and utilityman Niko Goodrum are the only players on the big league roster with experience at the position, though that pair has combined for just 331 innings of work at the position (nearly all in the minor leagues). It’s possible that another move is coming to add a more natural backup, but for now Jones, who hit .207/.266/.364 in 467 PAs last season, appears ticketed for a heavy workload.
If he wants to make money, Asia is his best option. If he wants to keep playing stateside and since expansion isn’t in the immediate future, It’s looking like either an independent league or organizationAL depth at AAA for a middling team…
Yeah he seems like a good candidate to go play overseas
Korea prefers foreign power hitters so probably not here. On other notes, I am just glad he got pulled before he could catch up to the new futility record minted by Chris Crush Davis.
MLB should be looking at getting rid of 2 teams not expanding. The talent is to watered down as it is with 30 teams.
That may be the dumbest thing I’ve seen all day. Just because not every team has talent throughout their entire roster doesn’t mean they should just get rid of teams. clearly those players are good enough to make an MLB roster so there’s not a lack of talent. Baseball is growing in many areas and many cities are growing larger and should have a major league team to accommodate their population size
I’d add 10 teams and make 4 divisions of 5 teams in each league. Reduce season to 150 games, get rid of interleague play, and expand the playoffs. 4 division winners and 4 wildcards per league.
There’s more than enough talent in the minors and in other countries to go around, and we’re on the front edge of a new talent era in baseball.
The old guard was produced at younger ages by the little league system, and others adjacent to it, which isn’t always competitive, especially in non-urban areas. We’re now in a time where almost all of the players in the league grew up playing some form of traveling tournament baseball. That’s why we see all these young guys having the success they do.
Reducing games costs revenue they are never going to reduce games
You think there is enough talent to support 10 more teams. The tigers don’t have a capable major leaguer on the team. How many teams in the league have 0 shot at winning. They need to reduce teams not increase. I’d like to see the Florida teams be retracted.
If the tigers do not have a capable major leaguer, how do they have a record of 8-5 so far?
Agree, double thumbs up, fold up the Marlins and Orioles. Miami baseball lovers can go for a Rays and Baltimore baseball lovers can go for a Nationals. Restore super high baseball level.
No contraction. The Marlins have a larger population and much better stadium than Tampa, so Tampa should move their team to Montreal. Miami stays. Oakland would be the other team to move: I think Vegas and Portland would be good options. Keep the same amount of teams, but move teams that can’t draw fans to larger/better markets.
I still remember the look on mahtook’s face when Alex Gordon robbed him of a 3 run home run in 2017.
Seems like the type thats going to develop by the time he’s 30. Tigers don’t owe him anything, next man up.
It looks like Jones is younger, and a better fielder, although neither of their batting stats last year were anything to write home about. Can’t fault this move. Sorry, Mikie.
Although I briefly pictured some GM, eating Life cereal and saying, “Let’s get Mikie!”
Jones hasn’t hit for league average since he was in A ball, so I’m not so sure why anyone thinks he’s going to start now.
Jones also had the most defensive runs saved by any outfielder last season…… so he doesn’t need to hit great
There’s a wide hap between hitting great and just hitting. Jones doesnt seem capable of anything on the scale.
As a defensive 4th OF you sub in when you’re leading is good. Not as an every day player. See Billy Hamilton.
He will be the 4th outfielder and not an everyday player in a month or two when the tigers call up Daz Cameron to start everyday in CF
That’s not true. Hamilton may not be a staters caliber but he is far better than your general 4th
I’d take Billy Hamilton on my favorite team all day any day.
I had a lot of chances to see him play when he was at LSU. He was a dynamic college player, gritty type. That doesn’t always translate to the majors, however. Tough break. Maybe somebody will take a flier, or he’ll have a chance to sort it out in AAA.
He had a chance to sort it out in AAA last year, and he just came back hitting worse
When you’re expelled from purgatory.
Not sure who’s contributed less, you on this thread or Mahtook for the Tigers.
I’d say I have considering that this reply is now the 26th comment and my second.
Reading is still a struggle I see….
I remember you. TrollReaper!
Oooh….
Purgatory?
He is not a member of the Royals or White Sox for god sakes.
Worst teams in baseball from the minors to big club that’s Jeters Marlins and the Blue Jays.
Hitless in 25 plate appearances?
“That’s cute. Let me know when you get to 50” says Chris Davis.
It feels to me like BABIP is almost as much a product of luck as it is skill. Anybody else feel the same?
Partially, also factor in exit velocity, barrel % and launch angle. If all those percentages are poor, but BABIP is high, expect regression. Kyle Tucker last year couldn’t buy a hit in the majors, his BABIP was terrible, but his other stats were relatively good. Essentially suggesting bad luck for Tucker even w the small sample size
So much of it seems to prove the old “baseball is a game of inches” adage. I remember that scene in Bull Durham where Crash was saying that the difference between hitting .250 and .300 is one hit a week… something like “one ground ball with eyes each week and you’re in Yankee Stadium.” You’re wise to combine it with other stats!
One more dying quail.
Skill to hit the ball, luck for if it drops in.
Maybe a “percentage of pitches seen put in play” stat would be of interest…
PPSPIP?
Yankees should take a flyer on him n see if they can fix him plus with injuries happening on the Yankees they need a guy with a pulse as a backup in their system
I could see the Jays claiming him first. Couldn’t be any worse than Socrates Brito.
Its close, but Brito had a monster year in the PCL last year and is 26. He has only had 186 PA’s in the majors. The Jays likely want to test drive him a little and see if he catches on.
Mahtook is almost at 1000 PA’s and is 29. No mystery left as to what he is.
Plus Socrates > Mikie in the name department (although, again. its close)
Nah, the Jays saw Mahtook for four games to start the season, and he badly flubbed on an outfield play that gifted the Jays three runs. Don’t think they’ll be in any hurry to bring this guy in.
I disagree Warren. Your take on Mahtook is spot-on, which means he’d be high on the Blue Jays list.
Sounds like a future Giant to me… San Francisco or Yomiuri
I wouldn’t expect Jones to get the bulk of the time. Goodrum is an important part of the lineup and will see significant time there as well,. The Lack of OF innings means little as Jones played IF most of his minor league career. Goodrum was platooning with Mahtook, so Jones will take over Mahtook’s half and come in late for defense. Hopefully Daz will be ready quickly, but the Tigers shouldnt be in a rush to start his clock.
I saw the Stamets hit. Poor angle to the ball, then he just let the LF run back and get the ball.
Mahtook is awful. This is a good move for the Tigers.
You Mahtook the words right out of my mouth.
He’s a piece of fecal matter.
Mahtook is a AAAA player. A guy that sits in AAA and gets called up in case of emergency. Jones is a 4th outfielder. They should start Goodrum in center. He had a diving play out there the other day. Plus he’s a decent hitter.
MM will be back. he’s a baseball rat…
I’d be very surprised if Mahtook gets claimed or traded… I suspect the Tigers will stick him back in the minors… he’s not as terrible as he has started the season, but his upside is extremely limited… his role will become organizational depth. There’s a distinct possibility his time in the show is over for good.
0 for 23. Maybe he can join the orioles.
Sad news today. Another tiger slid into oblivion. Another sad song from Motown extinction.
The guy is an absolute jerk in real life, so I believe that translates to the game!!!