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Tigers Sign Cameron Maybin

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1:11pm: The Tigers have announced the deal. In order to open a spot on the 40-man roster, righty Michael Fulmer was placed on the 60-day injured list. It was reported a couple months back that Fulmer, the former AL Rookie of the Year, was expected to be out until July, so the 60-day IL placement shouldn’t come as a surprise.

12:51pm: There is a deal in place with a $1.5MM salary, per Chris McCosky of the Detroit News (Twitter links). He can tack on another $1.3MM via incentives, Heyman tweets.

10:37am: The Tigers are nearing an agreement with veteran outfielder Cameron Maybin, according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network (via Twitter). Prospective contract terms aren’t yet known.

This’ll be Maybin’s third stint with the Detroit organization, which selected him in the first round of the 2005 draft. He broke into the majors with the club in 2007 before being dealt to the Marlins as part of the Miguel Cabrera deal. Maybin returned for a productive single-season run in 2016.

There have been ups and downs over the years, but Maybin makes his way back to the Motor City on the upswing. He was waiting and hoping with the Indians’ Triple-A affiliate last April when the injury-plagued Yankees came calling. Maybin ended up posting his best-ever season with the bat, slashing a hefty .285/.364/.494 with 11 home runs.

Maybin isn’t especially likely to repeat quite that output; he turned in consecutive 86 OPS+ finishes in the prior two seasons and rarely produced at better than the league-average rate. But he did shows some real changes in his batted-ball profile to support the improvement. Maybin’s barrel percentage vaulted to 10.2% from a prior high of 4.1%; he increased his launch angle to 11.1 degrees from a previous peak of 7.5. He also posted a career-best 88.8 mph average exit velocity and personal-high 16.9% HR/FB rate.

Even if there’s a step back offensively, Maybin figures to be a solid piece. He’s still fleet of foot, even if he won’t steal bases like he did in his youth, and capable of playing all three outfield positions. The Tigers certainly had a need for sturdy performers in an outfield unit that is filled with uncertainty. There’s also a good shot that Maybin will turn into a mid-season trade chip.

Tigers Sign Chris Smith

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  • The Tigers have signed right-hander Chris Smith to a minor league contract, Robert Murray tweets. Smith was with the Tigers for a brief period last year, but he suffered an elbow injury in spring training and wound up needing Tommy John surgery. Detroit released him as a result, but he’s now back with the organization, and Murray notes that he should be ready to return by March or April. Now 31 years old, Smith has only thrown five major league innings (all with Toronto in 2017). The last time Smith pitched competitively, he threw 55 innings of 3.93 ERA/3.88 FIP ball with 10.64 K/9 and 3.44 BB/9 as a member of the Nationals’ Triple-A affiliate in 2018.

Tigers Re-Sign Jordy Mercer

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4:33PM: The Tigers have officially announced the signing.

2:35PM: The Tigers have brought back veteran shortstop Jordy Mercer on a new contract, MLB Network’s Jon Heyman reports (Twitter link).  The deal is a minor league pact with an invitation to Detroit’s big league Spring Training camp, as per Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press (via Twitter).

After signing a one-year, $5.25MM deal with the Tigers last winter, Mercer hit .270/.310/.438 over 271 plate appearances, despite missing much of the first half of the season with quad injuries.  That roughly matches the .256/.316/.383 slash line Mercer posted over the first 2996 PA of his career from 2012-18 as a member of the Pirates, and he’ll now head back to the Motor City as a depth option.

Niko Goodrum is currently Detroit’s top choice at shortstop, though given Goodrum’s multi-positional versatility and the presence of both younger Willi Castro and now Mercer, the Tigers are arming themselves with some extra depth should they decide to again move Goodrum around the diamond.  The 33-year-old Mercer gives the Tigers more veteran experience in that regard, as Castro has only 30 MLB games under his belt.  Beyond just shortstop, Mercer could also back up elsewhere around the infield, as he has some experience as a first, second, and third baseman over his career.

Tigers Sign Kennys Vargas To Minor League Deal

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  • First baseman Kennys Vargas has agreed to a minor league contract with the Tigers, Jason Beck of MLB.com tweets. The deal does not include an invitation to major league spring training. The hulking Vargas will now join his second AL Central organization, having appeared in the majors with the Twins from 2014-17. He played for Ron Gardenhire, then the Twins’ manager and now the Tigers’ skipper, as a rookie. Vargas posted respectable offensive production at times in Minnesota, including in his first and third seasons, but owns a mediocre overall line of .252/.311/.437 with 35 home runs in 859 lifetime MLB plate appearances. The 29-year-old also hasn’t been great at the Triple-A level, where he has hit .244/.352/.436 and totaled 51 HRs over 1,297 PA, and he’s now coming off a rough 2019 campaign spent in Japan. As a member of the Chiba Lotte Marines, Vargas stumbled to a .179/.324/.274/ mark and managed just one homer in 102 trips to the plate.

Niko Goodrum Ready For Regular Shortstop Duty

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  • After playing seven different defensive positions in 2019, it looks like the Tigers’ Niko Goodrum is going to focus only on shortstop for the foreseeable future, Chris McCosky of The Detroit News writes.  Goodrum came up in the minors as a shortstop, but he expanded his horizons in hopes that versatility would improve his chances of cracking the big leagues.  That strategy worked out pretty well for the 28-year-old, who’s coming off a solid pair of seasons after the Tigers signed him to a minor league deal more than two years ago.  While that versatility is still an asset, Detroit likes Goodrum best at shortstop at present, especially after an impressive defensive showing over 326 2/3 innings at short in 2019.  While it’s tricky to make a definitive judgement based on such a small sample size, Goodrum received high grades over a range of defensive metrics (+3 Defensive Runs Saved, +8.6 UZR/150, and +6 Outs Above Average).

Free Agent Spending By Team: American League

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As we covered earlier this week, almost all of the prominent free agents in this year’s class have already exited the board. Because of that, we’ll see more and more minor league signings and fewer and fewer major league deals in the weeks leading up to the start of the regular season. This has been an aggressive offseason in terms of spending, though. To this point, which teams have handed out the most guaranteed money via the open market? We’ll examine both leagues, but let’s begin with the AL (reminder: This exercise excludes trades, club options, extensions, waiver claims and Rule 5 selections)…

Yankees: $336.5MM on two players (Gerrit Cole and Brett Gardner; top 50 MLBTR signings: two)

Angels: $260.85MM on three players (Anthony Rendon, Julio Teheran and Jason Castro; top 50 signings: three)

White Sox: $196.5MM on six players (Yasmani Grandal, Jose Abreu, Dallas Keuchel, Edwin Encarnacion, Steve Cishek and Gio Gonzalez; top 50 signings: five)

Twins: $151.8MM on eight players (Josh Donaldson, Michael Pineda, Jake Odorizzi, Homer Bailey, Sergio Romo, Alex Avila, Rich Hill and Tyler Clippard; top 50 signings: four)

Blue Jays: $114.35MM on four players (Hyun-Jin Ryu, Tanner Roark, Shun Yamaguchi and Travis Shaw; top 50 signings: two)

Rangers: $62.25MM on five players (Kyle Gibson, Jordan Lyles, Robinson Chirinos, Joely Rodriguez and Todd Frazier; top 50 signings: two)

Tigers: $17.8MM on four players (C.J. Cron, Jonathan Schoop, Austin Romine and Ivan Nova; top 50 signings: one)

Astros: $15.65MM on three players (Joe Smith, Martin Maldonado and Dustin Garneau; top 50 signings: zero)

Rays: $12MM on one player (Yoshitomo Tsutsugo; top 50 signings: zero)

Red Sox: $9.9MM on three players (Martin Perez, Jose Peraza and Kevin Plawecki; top 50 signings: zero)

Athletics: $7.5MM on one player (Jake Diekman; top 50 signings: zero)

Royals: $6.95MM on two players (Alex Gordon and Maikel Franco; top 50 signings: zero)

Indians: $6.25MM on one player (Cesar Hernandez; top 50 signings: zero)

Orioles: $3MM on one player (Jose Iglesias; top 50 signings: zero)

Mariners: $2.95MM on two players (Kendall Graveman and Carl Edwards Jr.; top 50 signings: zero)

Tigers Notes: Boyd, Fulmer

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  • The Tigers and left-hander Matthew Boyd avoided arbitration with a one-year, $5.3MM agreement earlier this month. There was then speculation that the two sides would work out a long-term pact (at least one that would buy out Boyd’s three arb-eligible seasons), but the soon-to-be 29-year-old told Jason Beck of MLB.com and other reporters Thursday that no talks have occurred. “No, but that would be cool,” said Boyd, who went to add that his goal is “to win a championship here.” Boyd may be the Tigers’ most valuable trade chip, and he has been the subject of rumors for several months now, but the club wasn’t aggressively shopping him as of December’s Winter Meetings.
  • More on the Tigers’ rotation from Beck, who passes along an update on righty Michael Fulmer’s status as he continues to recover from the Tommy John surgery he underwent last March. The former AL Rookie of the Year is progressing well, as Beck writes that Fulmer’s “pain-free” and scheduled to begin throwing from 120 feet off flat ground next week. However, manager Ron Gardenhire noted Fulmer’s not slated to return to a major league mound until “deep into the summer.” The Tigers set a 15- to 16-month recovery timetable for Fulmer when he went under the knife, so he should be back sometime in June or July if all goes according to plan.

Avila: Tigers Could Still Add An Outfielder

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The Tigers haven’t exactly been aggressive in free agency this winter, but they’ve still added a handful of veterans, including C.J. Cron, Jonathan Schoop, Ivan Nova and Austin Romine. They’ve yet to make an addition in the outfield, but general manager Al Avila said Thursday on the Tigers Caravan that doing so is a possibility (Twitter link via Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press). Asked about Yasiel Puig, however, Avila indicated that the longtime Dodger is “not a priority” for the Detroit organization.

It stands to reason that after failing to come to terms on an extension with Nicholas Castellanos, who’s now seeking a lucrative multi-year deal in free agency, he won’t be a fit for the Tigers, either. That said, the market isn’t totally devoid of interesting options. Kevin Pillar, Steven Souza Jr. and Domingo Santana are among the yet-unsigned names who’ve had some recent success. Then again, MLB.com’s Jason Beck suggests that the organization might prefer a left-handed bat for some lineup balance, and the market for lefty hitters is a bit more sparse. Jarrod Dyson is available, and if the Tigers want to dial up a reunion tour, familiar names like Curtis Granderson and Matthew Joyce are still free agents.

For the rebuilding Tigers, though, spending on an outfielder probably isn’t a priority in the way that Schoop and Cron were, as they do have a handful of somewhat intriguing options in house already. The team’s 2017 Rule 5 pick, Victor Reyes, brushed off a terrible rookie season (as many Rule 5ers endure) to deliver a .304/.336/.431 slash in 292 plate appearances. Much of that was BABIP-driven, but it’s understandable that they’re interested in getting a longer look at a player they selected with the No. 1 pick in the aforementioned Rule 5 Draft.

Detroit also picked up outfielder Travis Demeritte in the trade that sent Shane Greene to Atlanta. He struggled mightily in his first 186 MLB plate appearances, but he also posted a monster season in Triple-A and only turned 25 at the end of the season. Former No. 34 overall pick Christin Stewart struggled in his own look in the Majors this year but has a solid track record in Triple-A himself and was impressive in a 2018 cup of coffee. In center, JaCoby Jones shook off a terrible start to the season to hit .258/.335/.483 in his final 70 games. Detroit also has prospect Daz Cameron in the wings at Triple-A, although he’ll need to bounce back from an ugly 2019 effort to get a look in the big leagues.

Obviously, if the Tigers were aiming to contend in 2020, this group wouldn’t be close to sufficient, but that’s not the organization’s aim. There’s surely some merit to bringing in a more experienced option in the spirit of competitiveness, though, and the Tigers have shown a past willingness to do so (e.g. Cron, Schoop, Tyson Ross, Josh Harrison, Matt Moore) while some other rebuilding clubs more staunchly eschew adding any free agents of note. Whether that leads to a deal can’t be known, but Avila at the very least noted that the team is “talking to some agents” (Twitter link via The Athletic’s Cody Stavenhagen), suggesting that the open market is a likelier path to an addition than the trade market.

Tigers Sign Hector Santiago

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The Tigers have announced a minor-league deal with lefty Hector Santiago. He’ll receive an invitation to participate in MLB Spring Training.

Santiago had some rather productive campaigns earlier in his career. But at 32 years of age, he has settled into the existence of a journeying southpaw swingman.

Over the past three years, Santiago has transitioned from membership in a 5-man rotation to long relief duties. He carries only a 5.20 ERA in the 206 innings he has thrown during that span. Santiago has struck out 8.5 batters per nine over that time but has also handed out excessive numbers of walks (4.9 per nine) and home runs (1.7).

It’s tough to imagine Santiago having much of a shot at the Detroit rotation in camp. But he could challenge for a bullpen role or otherwise slot into the Triple-A staff to provide depth.

Jorge Bonifacio Has Good Chance At Breaking Camp With Tigers

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  • Jorge Bonifacio stands a good shot at earning a spot in the Tigers’ corner outfield mix, observes Chris McCosky of the Detroit News. Bonifacio, who’ll be in camp on a minor-league deal, has struggled in recent seasons with the division-rival Royals. That said, he’s still just 26 years old and showed some promise in an extended run in 2017 with Kansas City. McCosky breaks down further position battles in the piece, which could be of interest to Tigers’ fans.
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