Now that the calendar has flipped to June and the trade deadline is just over the horizon, teams will be starting to line up their plans for the deadline. Relief pitchers tend to always be in demand since just about every contender could squeeze another quality arm or two or three into their bullpen.
With the expanded playoffs, there are few obvious sellers at the moment, which puts a spotlight on those that do make sense to have players on the block. As such, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports that clubs with bullpen needs are interested in the relievers of the Tigers and Nationals. He specifically mentions Kyle Finnegan, Hunter Harvey, Carl Edwards Jr., Alex Lange, Will Vest and Jason Foley as those being targeted.
It’s not terribly surprising to see either club being eyed up by competitors. The Nats have been firmly in rebuild mode for a few years now, trading away established players like Trea Turner, Max Scherzer and Juan Soto. Their 25-35 record this season has them in the basement of the National League East. The Tigers are a bit more murky, as they tried to come out of their rebuild last year but ended up at 66-96. Their 26-33 record this year isn’t great but that leaves them only four games back in a weak American League Central. Perhaps they could hang around for the next couple of months but they recently lost both their best pitcher and position player when Riley Greene and Eduardo Rodriguez hit the injured list. That doesn’t guarantee they will slide out further back in the coming weeks but the possibility is there.
Of course, each individual player will require a different calculus based on their performance, years of control, age, etc. Let’s take a look at all six of those names that were mentioned and see what the sellers and the buyers will be looking at. Most of these guys have multiple years of control, meaning the Tigers/Nationals don’t strictly need to pull the trigger on a trade this summer. However, relievers are often volatile from year to year and there’s the ever-present injury risk, meaning there’s always a temptation to sell high when the opportunity is there.
Alex Lange, Tigers
Lange, 27, is in his third major league season and is seemingly improving every time the calendar flips over. He posted a 4.04 ERA in 2021, 3.41 last year and is down to 2.55 this year. His strikeout rate has also ticked up at the same time, going from 24.1% to 30.3% to 35%. However, the same is true of his walk rate, which has grown from 9.9% to 11.4% to 13%. That’s a bit concerning but his overall results are still trending in a positive direction as he’s taken on a higher-leverage role. He earned 21 holds last year and has jumped into the closer’s role this year with 10 saves already. He likely won’t even reach arbitration after this season and he’s not slated for free agency until after the 2027 campaign.
Will Vest, Tigers
Vest, 28, is similarly improving year over year like Lange. He had a 6.17 ERA with the Mariners in 2021 as a Rule 5 pick before getting sent back to the Tigers in July. They are surely glad the M’s made that decision as he then had an ERA of 4.00 last year and is down to 2.74 this year. He’s striking out 27.5% of opponents this year while walking just 8.8% and getting grounders on half of the balls in play he’s allowed. He hasn’t been in as many high-leverage spots, only notching a couple of holds on the year. Much like Lange, he’ll likely come up short of Super Two status this winter and won’t be on path for free agency until the 2027-28 offseason.
Jason Foley, Tigers
Foley, 27, made a brief debut in 2021 with a 2.61 ERA in 11 outings. He got a lengthier showing last year and his ERA jumped up but was still at a respectable 3.88. He’s cut that way down to 1.42 this year thanks to an incredible 61.4% ground ball rate. His 21.6% strikeout rate is a bit below average but his 5.2% walk rate is very good. He’s been moved into a setup role, earning 10 holds and a couple of saves on the year so far. Like his two teammates listed above, he’s yet to qualify for arbitration and isn’t scheduled for free agency until after the 2027 campaign.
Kyle Finnegan, Nationals
Finnegan, 31, moved into a high-leverage role with the Nats in recent years. He earned 22 saves and 27 holds over 2021 and 2022 with a 3.53 ERA in that time as well as a 24.6% strikeout rate, 10% walk rate and 47.9% ground ball rate. His ERA has ticked up to 4.56 this year, but that’s mostly due to one really bad outing early in the season. The Rays put a five spot on him on April 4 and he has a 2.11 ERA since. Every pitcher’s stats would look better if you took out their worst game, but his peripherals are fairly close to his career norms and it’s possible that he continues to even things out over time. He drew some trade interest a year ago but ultimately stayed in Washington. He came into this season with exactly three years of service time and is making a salary of $2.3MM. He’ll be in line for raises in the next two years before qualifying for free agency after 2025.
Hunter Harvey, Nationals
Harvey, 28, got some brief time in the big leagues with the Orioles earlier in his career but was put on waivers after the 2021 season. He was claimed by the Giants and then the Nationals on a second waiver claim. Last year, he got his first extended stretch in the big leagues and responded with a 2.52 ERA in 38 outings. He struck out 28.7% of batters faced while walking 7.6%. This year, his strikeout rate is up to 31.4% but some extra home runs have pushed his ERA to 3.33. He got six holds last year but is already up to 11 this season, along with a trio of saves. He’s making $870K this year and would be able to go through arbitration two more times before reaching free agency after 2025.
Carl Edwards Jr., Nationals
Edwards, 31, had some solid seasons with the Cubs earlier in his career but he didn’t pitch much over the 2019-2021 period due to various injuries. He signed a minor league deal with the Nats prior to 2022 and has been able to bounce back. He had a 2.76 ERA in 57 appearances last year and is at 3.28 this year. He’s only striking out 18.2% of opponents this season and is walking 12.7% but he’s getting grounders at a strong 48% clip. He had 13 holds and a couple of saves last year and is at 12 holds and one save already this year. Unlike the other names on this list, he’s a pure rental, making $2.25MM and slated for free agency this winter.
dodgers sure could use some new blood to their bullpen.
Agree. It’s been a long time since I’ve seen them with a BP this bad overall.
New blood? They could use anyone with a pulse.
It would be kind of ironic if the best play for the Cubs would be to trade for Lange, A guy they drafted, with Harris a guy who use to work for them. Things like that make you wonder about Karma.
Finnegan is decent but if someone trades for Harvey it better be a legit prospect that dudes a stud and has multiple years of control
Harvey is good, he just needs to learn how to strike guys out whenever he gets them to 2 strikes with 2 outs.
Did the Royals internet go down? Is that why they’re not also listed here?
“As such, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports that clubs with bullpen needs are interested in the relievers of the Tigers and Nationals. ”
Ask Rosenthal why teams don’t want any of the Royals’ relievers.
Royals have better relievers than any of the Nats or Tigers stiffs by a mile. This is just the GM’a of those two teams trying to gin up early deals while their guys are hanging onto respectable numbers.
The pen depends greatly on how the manager uses it. Some teams can have excellent relief corps but are mismanaged into mediocrity or into a liability. The best example was Jim Leyland. Whereas Bruce Boxhy, Buck Showalter and AJ Hinch are master bullpen manipulators. Lou Pineila was also one of the best ever.
I feel this with my team, the brewers. We have had Hader and williams (arguably two of the best closers in baseball) anchoring the 8th and 9th for years, however its the surrounding pieces we got the best out of. Outside of a true blip in the radar last year it seems like we have had consistently decent bullpens for a decade. The real key us realizing the majority of bullpen arms are likely to have an ‘off year’ every other year. Load the 40 man with optionable arms and let the off year/on year take its course.
The 2021 Brewers had a pitching staff for the ages but because of the Christian Yelich extension, they wouldn’t go out and get that hitter they desperately needed.
The Royals were discussed in the Athletic – apparently, if teams want someone now, they have to take both Chapman and Barlow.
mlbtraderumors.com/2023/06/royals-listening-to-tra…
5 days ago they had this about Barlow
And what about Aroldis? You know he got an advent calendar that countsdown to Trade Deadline 2023, and hung it in his garage, as soon as he got to KC.
Haha. I think Chapman being moved is expected by everybody in the league. Like saying “the Yankees don’t anticipate moving Giancarlo Stanton, because nobody is touching that contract with a 10 ft clown pole”
Did he hand that calendar in his garage for target practice?
I knew someone would grab the low-hanging fruit. +1
If the Tigers can get a good return on one of them (like they did stealing Justyn Henry Malloy for Joe Jimenez) I say go for it. If not hang onto all three for next year. BP arms are the easiest to replace.
Jimenez was a rental. Henry-Malloy looks like he can hit, but his best position looks to be DH. Until he actually does something for the team, its a little early to put it in the win column. None of these pitchers should be going anywhere. Its a weak division, and trading away the bullpen, the only strength of the team, will not make it better. These pitchers have years of control left. Shreve is the rental, and lefty. Trade him.
Vierling and Carpenter will soon be back. Manning, Skubal, and Brieske are all starting rehabs. Faedo will soon follow. E-Rod should be back shortly. Parker Meadows and Malloy could help the offence. Its ugly at the moment but reinforcements are on the way.
The only problem is Harris isn’t invested in any of these players.
Faedo has two good pitches and is a reliever. He just doesn’t know it yet.
I wouldn’t mind seeing the Angels trading for Hunter Harvey (Bryan’s son).
If I’m the D-backs I call about Hunter Harvey, Will Vest, and Jason Foley. Alex Lange probably will be out of their price range, with plenty of suitors to drive up the cost. Edwards and Finnegan I stay away from, they have troubling peripherals.
This is what I don’t get with people wanting the Tigers to trade their relief pitchers…why would they? I mean, these are guys that are barely arbitration eligible by the end of the year and are some of the brighter spots on the team, so why would the Tigers be willing to trade them without some respectable returns? This isn’t AA’s Tigers where he’s desperate enough to trade for nothing, I’m hoping Harris doesn’t start giving away controllable arms for more long term projections. If the Tigers trade any of these guys with several years of team control, I hope they do it with a decent return.
I honestly hate articles like this. Seriously, the Tigers are going to flip their bullpen twice in one year, for what? It’s not like these guys are expensive, they have 3–4 years of control of them contract wise, and would be weakening the rebuild. It makes no sense. They have money to spend in the off season, trading away controllable pitching is just going to keep the rebuild going.
You bet!! $72 million off the books with an Erod opt out. I hear you….don’t understand it.
E Rod will be pitching himself into a trade to a contender when he gets back from the IL.
Tigers are not just “giving people away”
If a team wants to pay a high premium for one of their relievers, then Scott Harris will look at that. I don’t see any of the premium young relievers being moved unless Scott Harris is blown away with offers that are above market value for young foundational hitters who can also play great defense.
Remember, as much as Avila was criticized some of his draft picks and trade returns are getting very close to the majors:
Scott Harris is also drafting well and Tigers have #3 pick in the next MLB draft where they are projected to take a top hitting outfielder.: Dylan Cruise or Wyatt Langford.
Tigers that are highly rated and could be core pieces include: Jace Jung (MLB No. 82), 2B — West Michigan (High-A)
3. Wilmer Flores (MLB No. 94), RHP — Erie (Double-A)
4. Colt Keith, 3B/2B — Erie (Double-A)
5. Ty Madden, RHP — Erie (Double-A)
6. Peyton Graham, SS — Lakeland (Single-A)
7. Justyn-Henry Malloy, OF/3B — Toledo (Triple-A)
ETC….
Just keep flooding the farm system with talent and the Tigers will
find themselves in similar position to the Orioles, Pirates etc..
Our farm system is weak considering our draft status.
Sure, E-Rod is pitching into a trade…but what a horrible signing that is if that is true.
Under Avila, the reward is far under when it comes to what we traded. I mean, when Rodgers is the best they got for Verlander….they got fleeced.
Harris has been dumpster diving…it’s become a thing.
What is sad, is all those prospects aren’t 100 level, Every team has top prospects, but that doesn’t mean they are good. That is the issue, The Tiger’s top prospects have clear flaws to their game that don’t make them top 100.
You missed Dingler. He is really coming along.
At what point is flooding the farm system with talent going to equate to winning MLB games?
Jace Jung and Colt Keith are candidates to play 2B or 3B or both.
Justin Henry Malloy is almost mlb ready for 3B.
Dillion Dingler will be pushing Jake Rogers for catching duties sometime in ’24
Tigers will be drafting one of the 2 top rated college OFs @ #3 in the upcoming MLB draft.
Tigers should not be tying up any of their positions with declining free agent veterans that would block the positions and player development of any of their young, rising draft picks/farm hands that are not too far from the majors.
Tigers are making turns in the right direction.
They are already competitive for the Division this year with some of their best starting pitchers still injured and on the IL.
(Tarik Skubal, Matt Mannning, Casey Mise etc.)
When the Tigers deep pitching on the IL and in the minors
comes together, and when their young hitters come together and are promoted to the majors, the Tigers will be a very competitive team in the AL Central.
The next few upcoming drafts and, perhaps, a few very good trades could expedite that process already underway.
The process has already started.
The Tigers are fighting for 2nd place in the AL Central.
As more of their young players step forward and get acclimated to the big leagues, then the Tigers will be even better.
The ‘Tigers are only a 3.5 games out of 1st place and only 1 game out of 2nd place in the AL Central..
It is early, but the Tigers are on pace for a much better season this year over last year.
Imagine how much better the Tigers would be with healthy above average performances from Mise, Manning and Skubal in the rotation?!
And, they Tigers could be competitive for the Division with better offensive performances from Torkelson, Green, Rogers
and at some point” Colt Keith, Malloy, Jace Jung?! Dillon Dingler?!
I think Tiger fans are expecting fair returns. Never seen a fan say trade away this good non rental for anything even if it’s a weak return.
Relievers are volatile so sell when they are in demand. Easy to replace them as well if you know what you are doing. If you have a good pen then you likely know how to find more.
I watched Dombrowski struggle to put a decent pen together for Detroit, and until ’21, only after adding Fetters, did Avila finally put a good pen together. Easy to replace them? No! Its not! Tigers pen is only 3 deep. Not even close to what Houston or Tampa Bay has. They need more relievers, not less.
Not easy for Dombrowski maybe. Impossible for Avila. But for a good gm and pitching coaches it’s easy. Majority of teams don’t have that. But the ones that do usually put together a pen. If your team can’t they better find people who can.
Dombrowski was handcuffed by former Owner Mike Illitch who would frequently go behind Dave’s back and work with Boros to add players Dombrowski would not have signed like Prince Fielder.
Moves like that blew holes in the Tigers budget and hurt them in building a better bullpen.
In this situation I don’t think you trade all of them. But if you can get a good young bat for Lange or Foley that can contribute this year or next you do it.
It better be a hell of a bat. Both Foley and Lange have improved the more they are in the league….you are talking about two late inning arms that are young and getting better….
I still stick with why would you trade that?
The reason being is the upcoming free agent class is rather weak and they can afford to trade a RP or 2 to fill a glaring need on offense. The upcoming 2B class Berti and Polanco have club options that could easily b picked up. Adam Merrifield with mutual options. After that there’s Frazier, Schoop, and Wong. 3B is headlined by Chapman, Urshela, Escobar, Wendle, Donaldson, Turner. And I don’t see any chance Chapman signing here.
At 3B they might b able to get by internally. They should b able to find a FA OF as well. If they plan on getting a solid 2B they re gonna have to due so via trade.
I think they can buy the difference with Miggy, Baez and ERod coming off the books…sometimes trading the future to fix the future needs to stop. Even if there is a step back, you have to realize this year is a wash, you have to keep talent to improve. Foley and Lange are talent.
You think Javy Baez is coming off the Detroit books? Really?
If so, you might be the only person in the known universe who believes that he will opt-out, or a successful trade away will happen.
But, whatever, a boy can dream.
@xxthe, who in particular are they going to buy?? They need a 2B that is clear and I listed the free agency outlook at that position above. Who there would put them over the top?? They need a 3B same as above, who puts them over the top?? Yes they should spend on an OF possibly 2. Their stable of young arms that have been marred by injury should all b ready by next season. At most maybe one veteran arm could and should b added.
Again it is easy to just say “spend $”. But key is filling needs and even more important is what is available. Just cus a team needs something does not mean there is a clear upgrade available in free agency or that any particular free agent is willing to sign with a given team.
I’m not in Baez’s mind, but I do know he will make more not being a Tiger,
And even if we are stuck with Baez, it’s not like his contract is a huge hurdle. So what if we have to keep him? It’s not that crippling of a contract.
And that is still being stuck with a decent SS. He’s not a horrible SS.
Too early to ascertain that. That would be like asking a farmer how good their yield is going to be in March.
@×Xthe, let me rephrase that. Out of Frazier, Schoop, and Wong who are you hoping Tigers sign??? Yeah that is how limited the upcoming 2B market is….
But hey, guys like you think that any team at any time can just spend their way to contention without putting in even a minute of research as to what is available without a trade.
That is not what I said…I never said they can spend their way into anything.
And they have do have some decent 2nd base options on this team, in fact I don’t think 2nd is the issue….hell if we have to keep baez move him to 2nd.
The bigger point to this is even if you trade Vest, Foley and Lange that still won’t get you a starting second baseman.
What decent 2B options do they have?? And yes some of those relievers by all means could net an upgrade at 2B from a contender. 2B is currently a black hole for the Tigers. And fine move Baez to 2nd and move their black hole to SS where again nothing in Tigers system is on verge of MLB level and again has a weak upcoming SS class in free agency.
It’s easy to say they should upgrade without trading(which essentially is spending $). But the reality often is trading is the only real option. Go ahead try and talk around it all you want, I’m throwing out names and the reality of what is actually going on. You are deflecting and shifting and saying what they should do without providing any insight into who in particular they should b seeking to upgrade the team.
Just fett if you are responding to me. this @xxthe needs to stop. thanks.
@xXthe, I was responding to u. If you are so opposed to them trading and seeing the bleak free agent 2B market. Who in particular from farm system do u propose play 2B next season or who do u propose they sign to play 2B??? Without a trade what is your clearly defined solution?
Tigers do not need other teams’ “junk free agents”.
Signing big salaried players in decline is what got the Tigers into the mess they are in now.
Scott Harris is smarter than that
Harris is not going to hitch the Tigers wagon and future to marginal free agent upgrades whose contracts will, most likely, blow up in the faces of what ever teams signs t hem.
The Tiger’s GM would not be trading these guys for “junk free agents,” but for more promising prospects, if he can get them. Same with the Nats.
If Harris can get a few top 50 prospect position players who are close to the big leagues, then that might be worth it.
If, the Tigers are offered “tier 3” prospects and/or “lottery tickets”
then, unless the Front Office sees something in the young players that they can fix that is not being addressed by their current teams, then
it should be a “hard pass” on those players and deals.
Tigers already have enough marginal players and “lottery tickets” on the farm.
It is rare that a relief pitcher gets a high level prospect…that is wishful thinking. And if you bring up Malloy he still hasn’t made his big league appearance.
It’s rare for rental RPs who are not setup guy or closers to net big returns. The RPs mentioned in this article all have years of club control and yes they typically net strong returns. You are literally talking out of your a@$
And Joe Jimenez is not pitching that great so the trade for Justyn Henry-Malloy currently looks like a steal even if there is some level of TBD
Not seeing the wisdom in signing marginal free agents that the Front Office and Manager would feel obligated to play because of their larger contracts
and block some of the top young Tigers draft picks and farm system players from establishing themselves as productive above average major leaguers?!
I love your analysis!
The Mets need all of these guys. Edwards Jr always impressed me
Harvey is so risky. A heartbreaker when in Baltimore because of extensive injury history. Buck had him then, maybe he rolls the dice and tells Eppler to go get him now. Because of injury history, wouldn’t be surprised if Mets didn’t have to give up much in return.
Word on the street is that Carl Edward’s is about to be traded to the Sox for Andrew Vaughn and Joe Kelly . You heard it here first. Javier Baez is also being mentioned in this trade
Hearing big news on the street in Bridgeport. Trade in the works with Seattle. Marco Gonzales and J.P. Crawford heading to the Sox in exchange for Lance Lynn and Gavin Sheets. You heard it here first !
Pirates need to go for some of these guys, our bullpen stinks, not so sure about Edwards Jr though…
Pirates pen is one of the best in baseball. They have half a dozen guys to hold leads. Whatever other 2 guys that are riding the shuttle are just there to eat garbage innings. Another arm is a luxury if they are still in it at deadline.
David Bednar is having a great year
Besides Bednar and Holderman, I’m talkign guys like De Jong.
The Pirates do have a good bullpen but they need one more good arm.De Jong and Z are not cutting it.If the Pirates by some miracle are competitive you need two sets of three or four good guys to alternate games.The inevitable injury will occur.Roansy needs to go there now as I have unfortunately given up on him as a starter and they may be forced to bring Priester up to start.They still need someone like Plesac for AAA depth.
Underwood will likely be back. Not good but better than DeJong. If Crowe gets healthy he is better. If Velazquez isn’t finished Contreras can go there. Mlod and Selby are promising in AAA. Santos is there as well. They play a dozen games in a row so let DeJong eat some innings if need be then replace him during that stretch. That 7th 8th spot is just to get fresh arms up when needed.
Dream-I never thought that I would welcome Underwood back but I think he needs 2 or 3 outings in AAA and De Jong 2 or 3 more in MLS and if De Jong does not improve just release him and bring Underwood back.
I think that you were right about Roansy.They will need a long man and perhaps he can be that pitcher.
I am not optimistic about VV.
I do not see any other avenue than to bring Priester up unless they think that Perdonmo can give them 3 or 4 good innings as a starter.
Mendoza Having arm soreness and coming back and having it again is never reason to be optimistic. Best case he needs over a month off closer to 2. How likely does he come back as good? And maybe he needs to go to pen. Priester doesn’t look ready and doesn’t look like anything special but next man up if need be. Pirates might go veteran trash though. Won’t need Contreras in rotation for a bit being off Thursday Monday. Can always go pen games. Maybe Contreras finds himself but no reason to expect it.
Yeah Underwood could give you a inning or 2 without giving up a run or only 1 or 2. I like his chances to do so more than Bolton DeJong. It will be a revolving door. If you have options or won’t be claimed you will be replaced for a fresh arm.
De Jong, and Rob Z aren’t the sharpest knife in the drawers.
Tiger fans..wait until the draft and the arrival of Wyatt Langford who will do for the lineup here is the 20’s what Justin Verlander did for the pitching staff in the 00’s. Add Jung and Keith to the mix and we may finally have a MLB lineup in Detroit.
With this in mind, the Tigers should keep Lange and Foley as they will need someone to anchor the bullpen in 25, 26 and 27
I remember the late 70s before Sparky Anderson showed up. The Tigers started rebuilding in earnest after the 73 season. As successful as the positional team came together, the Tigers felt their MiLB pitching staff was even stronger. However, Sparky had a short leash for pitchers and had no leash for young players but was especially impatient with young pitchers. (Remember, Tom Seaver played a part to oust Sparky from the Reds.) Most of that super MiLB pitching class was mismanaged into obscurity.
Harvey’s the one I’d look at. Best combo of track record, upside, control, and cost to acquire.
Bro Alex Lange is so underrated
If they can get a solid piece on offence for one of the three relievers (preferably Vest) then I think they should do it. The prices for pitching this past offseason were crazy and it is a sellers market so why not take advantage. If the price isn’t right then hang onto all of them for next year. Everyone bitched that the bullpen would suck when they traded Soto and Jimenez and that didn’t happen. Neither one of them is doing great this year. Relievers are volatile. Strike while the iron is hot but not at the price of sewering our chances next year. Grabbing a bat that can contribute now (like a Juan Yepez type) or soon like we did with Henry Malloy makes sense for next year.
Yes, but they could absorb the trades of Jimenez and Soto, and loss of Chafin in free agency, because they knew what they had in Lange and Foley. Vest and Cisnero were wild cards. If they deal Lange or Foley they don’t have that next guy in the wings. Brendan White is not doing well in AAA.
I don’t see Detroit trading the relief crew this year, as there is no reason to do so. These guys are what they want. Controllable for the immediate future. The team has so many other issues it doesn’t make sense to create one there right now. The Tigers situation clears up a lot after this season anyways. Having Miggy, Schoop, and A. Meadows come off the team, and potentially the two opt outs leaving will make some space.
Sure for a De La Cruz the whole team is for sale, but who’s going to give up a non platoon regular hitter for a relief guy ? Right now if the Tiger’s could plate even a small portion of the R.I.S.P. they’ve had this year, they’d be leading the central right now. Looking for a spark plug in the lineup, and if they can trade for one everything would probably be for sale.
After the draft there may be more players available on everyone’s farm system so perhaps if they have a eye on someone there, then yes. If the guys currently in the line up don’t start plating guys who knows how many of them will be gone next year. The line keeps moving, new players drafted, more guys have to advance or go somewhere else. The draft will be exciting, so I don’t look for any type of trading till after that.
Hari Harris, aka Beamer, to the Mets
Hinch to SD
Bundle, bundle bundle……! Target your prospect!
It would be nice to see some our guys in the playoffs…or even the WS!
Best chances…LAX, DFW……
Hunter Harvey is coming home to Baltimore!
Sure, you can Harvey back for signing over MASN. There’s practically zero chance that the Nats will deal with the O’s.
There is NO way Detroit should trade their bullpen pieces.
Lange, Foley and Vest all have 3 yrs of team control left.
Maybe the Tigers will turn it around next year!
We all pretty much know they need offense, the exchange they would get for these guys would be class A or AA players that aren’t MLB ready. That said, they shouldn’t do anything unless they can get a bat that can help them NOW.
The players the Tigers should be listening on are the rentals and short terms. Lorenzen, Boyd, Shreve, and Cisnero. Based on this article, they should be listening to offers on Greene and Torkelson. Just like Lange, Foley, and Vest are the young pitchers showing promise, they are the only glimmer of hope on the offense. Trading either makes no sense at all.
Trade them all.
They deserve the opportunity to shine!
It’s no fun being a Tigers’ fan the days…….every morning I wake up with a headache…… I blame the Tigers. Huerta wrote about days like these…
Farm System Ratings are “all over the map” and not frequently in agreement
depending on which rating service or sports media site you choose.
For Example, “Bleacher Report” has the Tigers 2023 Farm System rated as high as #10
Some of the rating services on both the East and West Coasts often times do not have the extensive knowledge and first hand seeing and analysis of teams in smaller and medium sized markets. There is only so much you can do by just analyzing stats sheets.
At some point, you have to actually see the players play, analyze their makeup and do a more comprehensive analysis of players, their skills sets, facts that don’t show up on a spreadsheet etc.
bleacherreport.com/articles/10063144-updated-farm-…
Foley is the guy ya want. Huge upside