The Tigers and left-hander Thomas Szapucki have agreed to a minor league contract, per Evan Woodbery of MLive.com. He’ll head straight to minor league camp and look to build back up after a pair of injury-ruined seasons.
Once a well-regarded pitching prospect within the Mets’ system, Szapucki made his big league debut with New York in 2021, tossing 3 2/3 innings. He was tagged for six runs in that rough first effort, but he’d pitched well when healthy in the minors and put himself on the map for a larger MLB look in 2022. He indeed got that larger look, albeit only to an extent. Szapucki was clobbered for nine runs in just 1 1/3 innings, and the Mets traded him to the Giants alongside J.D. Davis in the deal bringing Darin Ruf back to Queens.
Szapucki took off in San Francisco, albeit in a relatively small sample. He tossed 13 2/3 innings for the Giants, recording a pristine 1.98 ERA with a big 29.6% strikeout rate and tidy 7.4% walk rate. Add in the 3.11 ERA in 25 minor league outings (16 of them starts), and a then-26-year-old Szapucki looked like he might have a real path to meaningful innings in San Francisco.
As is so often the case with pitching prospects, injuries intervened. Szapucki began experiencing arm discomfort in spring of 2023. He opened the year on the injured list, and by mid-May he’d undergone surgery to alleviate thoracic outlet syndrome. He didn’t pitch a single inning in 2023. His 2024 season was limited to just one inning, as shoulder troubles derailed a comeback bid with the Giants, who’d non-tendered him but quickly re-signed him to a minor league contract.
Over the past two seasons, Szapucki has pitched just one professional inning. His big league track record is skewed heavily by that pair of brutal starts with the Mets, but his most recent MLB work was that excellent stretch of 10 relief outings with the 2022 Giants. The 2015 fifth-rounder brings a career 2.87 minor league ERA to the Tigers — including a 3.47 mark with a 28.8% strikeout rate in 114 Triple-A innings.
Honestly, I miss the days when players went by “Tom”
Depth who could be interesting. Like Balazovic.
Who?
They signed Jordan Balazovic earlier in the offseason. Former Twins top prospect.
TOS surgery has one of the worst track records for MLB pitchers. Unlike Tommy John, where pitchers often regain velocity, TOS surgery frequently kills fastballs due to nerve and circulation issues.
Matt Harvey was never the same after TOS. Other notable TOS casualties: Shaun Marcum, Nate Karns, Carter Capps.
If Szapucki doesn’t hit 93 mph in spring training, he’ll never throw a meaningful MLB inning again.
dont forget strasburg probably the most famous with harvey,
There’s always the knuckleball…
Szapucki- happy fat Tuesday if you celebrate
Szapucki’s shoulder problems go back to when he was a Met minor leaguer. He missed more than a year at least once, and other significant time while there.
That last name confused Illich……