Right-hander Beau Brieske has been on Triple-A Toledo’s injured list since July 10 due to elbow soreness, and Tigers GM Jeff Greenberg told reporters (including the Detroit News’ Chris McCosky) yesterday that the reliever had a setback during a recent bullpen session. As a result, Brieske will be shut down for the next 4-6 weeks, meaning that his 2025 season is all but officially over, barring both a deep Tigers postseason run and a rather improbable activation to a playoff roster.
The extent of Brieske’s elbow problems aren’t yet known, as Greenberg only said that surgery was “not yet” an option. Brieske has missed time due to forearm issues in the past but hasn’t undergone a major arm procedure during his career.
A 27th-round pick for the Tigers in the 2019 draft, Brieske made his MLB debut as a starter in 2022, and was then shifted into a multi-inning relief role in 2023. This usage continued into last season, as Brieske made 12 pseudo-starts as an opener, mostly late in the year. Brieske’s flexibility out of the pen was a key part of the “pitching chaos” strategy that the Tigers used down the stretch to help fuel their late-season surge into a playoff spot.
Brieske delivered a 3.86 ERA over 184 1/3 innings and 86 games from 2022-24, with steadily increasing strikeout rates across those three seasons. In 2025, however, Brieske posted only a 6.55 ERA across 22 innings and appearances, as his season was impacted by injuries even before his elbow soreness — ankle problems hampered Brieske in Spring Training and led to an early-season IL placement. The bottom fell out when Brieske was charged for five runs in just a third of an inning on June 11, and he was optioned to Triple-A the next day.
Brieske is arbitration-controlled through the 2028 season and is due only a minimal raise on his $1.025MM salary from 2025, though his health status may hinge on whether or not Detroit tenders him a contract. If his elbow heals up without the need for surgery, the Tigers could well bring him back given his modest price tag, and the hope that Brieske will return to his old form with better health in 2026.
I wasn’t expecting Brieske back this year due to his results, but Hurter being shut down because of a bad back is worrisome. He was one of Detroit’s best LH in the bullpen and had strikeout stuff. They need him back.
Anderson & McGonigle fight it out in the spring for starting shortstop in 2026. As long as he hits in spring training, Baez should be the center fielder, because he looked very good out there. Or maybe supersub.
Anderson can’t play SS. I think he could hit enough to be a good offensive second baseman though.
Ben is right, but it’s not inconceivable that we see Anderson at 2B, McGonigle at SS and Lee at 3B at some point in 2026. The Tigers are defensively challenged at all three positions right now…
I feel like he should bite the bullet and get his TJS now.
Although, it’s a little unclear as to why surgery is not an option at this time. Hmmm
He’ll miss 2026 and hopefully be ready for 2027 if he has TJ now or 3 months from now, but it feels inevitable.
The Tigers will work threw his injury like they’ve had with all the others. The team is getting better all the time. For a lot of guys this is the most they’ve played in any one season in the majors. They’ve been a pretty healthy bunch. Having Dingler bloom into that hitting catcher has been a huge success story for them this year.
First base looks great, and Keith is playing third. With Javy and Zack super utility players going infield and out its got a lot of looks with just those 5 guys. The Tigers look very good. GO TIGERS !
Appreciate your positivity!! For some reason have not been seeing such exuberance from fans of late, yet they are still in a very enviable position. I also know diehard fans can also be the most exacting and strict…
All three of these guys are streaky hitters and defensive liabilities on the dirt. The Tigers may survive playing match-up with these guys for the rest of ‘25, but I can’t see how they can be part of an infield “core” going forward..
Just call Tommy John now. If he gets it fixed NOW he should be ready to go by ST of ‘27.
Wait until this offseason and it might be summer of ‘27.
A guy with 3 years of control left is a non tender candidate? I could see that if he only had 1 year of arbitration left and it was clear he wasn’t going to pitch due to TJS.
Drew Sommers is not ready for prime time.