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Christin Stewart Among Slew Of Tigers Call-Ups

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Several new faces will be joining the Tigers on a flight to Kansas City this evening, as MLive’s Evan Woodbery was among those to report that outfielder Christin Stewart, third baseman Jeimer Candelario, pitcher Tyler Alexander, catcher Grayson Greiner, pitcher Zac Reininger, and pitcher Daniel Stumpf will be called up to the big club in short order (Twitter link).

It would be an exercise in tedium to review the records of each player joining the Detroit dugout this week, so individual focus will instead be paid to Stewart, a player that prior to the season ranked as the team’s sixth-best prospect according to Fangraphs. Cited as being in possession of raw power and a solid batting eye, the Tennessee alum has been nonetheless seen as a work in progress, at best, on the outfield grass.

The 25-year-old was handed a substantial crack at playing time for the rebuilding Tigers this season but failed to make an impact in 327 at-bats. His .239/.321/.393 output was disappointing considering the outfielder’s solid output with Triple-A Toledo in 2018, a campaign that saw Stewart hitting .264/.364/.480 (138 wRC+) in 522 at-bats with the Mud Hens. He has been with Toledo for the entirety of this August following his demotion at the end of July.

Tigers Minor Leaguer Chace Numata Passes Away At 27

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According to a statement from the organization, Tigers Double-A catcher Chace Numata has passed away from injuries sustained in a skateboarding accident on Friday. Numata was 27 years of age.

Numata was a switch-hitting catcher from Pearl City, Hawaii who originally broke into pro ball as a 14th round pick of the Phillies organization in 2010. A veteran of ten professional seasons, Numata appeared with the Phillies, Yankees, and Tigers organizations in his career. In 2019, Numata’s first with the Detroit organization, the backstop received his first opportunity in Triple-A baseball, while spending the majority of the season with the club’s Double-A affiliate in Erie.

A statement from the Tigers organizations regarding Numata’s untimely death reads as follows:

“The Detroit Tigers are deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Chace Numata, who was a catcher for our Double-A affiliate in Erie. Though this was his first year with our organization, Chace was beloved by many from our Major League club through all levels of our player development system. He had an engaging personality that quickly established him as a leader on and off the field, and his presence will be forever remembered in our organization and beyond. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends, teammates, and coaches.”

MLBTR offers condolences to Numata’s family and all those affected by his passing.

Tigers Select Bryan Garcia

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The Tigers announced today they’ve selected the contract of right-handed reliever Bryan Garcia. Outfielder JaCoby Jones, already known to be out for the season, was transferred to the 60-day injured list to create 40-man roster space.

Garcia, 24, ranks 23rd among Tiger farmhands at Fangraphs, where Kiley McDaniel and Eric Longenhagen praise the Tommy John survivor’s mid-90’s fastball and plus slider. Garcia has stayed healthy all season and logged a 2.97 ERA in the hitter-friendly International League over 33.1 innings. His strikeout (23.9%) and walk (10.1%) rates with Triple-A Toledo are less impressive than the run prevention numbers, but he’ll nonetheless get a chance to cement himself as a long-term piece in a Tiger bullpen that sorely needs them.

Braves Acquire Caleb Thielbar

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The Braves have acquired lefty Caleb Thielbar from the Tigers, per an announcement from the Detroit organization. Cash considerations are going back in return.

Thielbar, 32, is several years removed from his last appearance in the big leagues. After wrapping up his time with the Twins, he spent two years in indy ball and then joined the Tigers before the 2018 campaign.

Since the start of the 2018 campaign, Thielbar has been a fixture in the Tigers’ upper-minors relief corps. He has been effective in fifty games this year, pitching to a 3.30 ERA with 10.8 K/9 and 1.9 BB/9 over 76 1/3 frames.

Since he is not playing on a MLB contract, Thielbar was eligible to be traded after July 31st. He’ll potentially be eligible for the postseason roster if the Braves decide to add him to their 40-man roster before tomorrow evening (or if they add him thereafter to replace an injured player). Odds are, the primary objective is to add some organizational depth and protect against any unforeseen problems that may arise.

Ron Gardenhire Hopes To Stick With Tigers

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  • Tigers manager Ron Gardenhire has helped oversee their extensive rebuilding effort since last year, and it’s likely he’ll helm the club’s dugout again next season. The soon-to-be 62-year-old Gardenhire’s “in little to no jeopardy” of not returning in 2020 for the final season of his contract, Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press writes. Gardenhire, for his part, seems uninterested in going anywhere else. “That’s to be determined for (general manager) Al Avila, with where they want to go and what they want to do, but I enjoy this and I love this city,” Gardenhire said of his future. The Tigers have stumbled to a miserable 103-158 record under Gardenhire, but it would be unfair to judge him for that. Anyone would’ve been hard-pressed to guide last year’s roster or this season’s team to respectable marks.

Niko Goodrum Unlikely To Return From Injured List In 2019

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Tigers utilityman Niko Goodrum has been diagnosed with an adductor strain, as Chris McCosky of the Detroit News reports. He’ll require at least a ten-day to two-week layoff, which puts the remainder of his season in jeopardy.

Fortunately, the strain doesn’t appear to be serious, so there’s no reason to believe Goodrum’s offseason program will be impacted. It is still possible that he will recover quicker than expected and have enough time to ramp up to a return. But the lack of minor-league rehab opportunities won’t help, and there’s not much upside to forcing the issue for the cellar-dwelling Tigers.

Goodrum has been one of the more effective players on the Tigers roster this year. He has plugged gaps wherever need in the field, logging time at every position except the battery spots and seeing significant action in the middle infield, corner outfield, and first base.

On the offensive side of the spectrum, Goodrum’s chief asset has been his legs. He has graded as one of the most valuable baserunners in the sport in 2019. At the plate, he’s slashing a slightly below-average .248/.322/.421. If he can trim back the strikeouts and continue to boost his walk rate, Goodrum might conceivably tick up a bit further offensively.

While he’s not exactly a budding star, Goodrum has established himself as a solid MLB piece over the past two seasons. The 27-year-old could be discussed in trade talks over the winter, not that the Detroit organization has any urgency to move him. Goodrum will have 2.031 years of MLB service when the current season ends, meaning he’ll be shy of qualifying for arbitration. With cheap control rights and ample defensive flexibility, he’s a useful player for the Tigers with a bit of upside to boot.

Daniel Norris Impresses Tigers

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  • Tigers southpaw Daniel Norris has been a bright spot in a dismal season in Detroit, Chris McCosky of the Detroit News writes. Norris is being handled with care down the stretch since he was so limited last season, which reflects the fact that the organization is invested in the 26-year-old’s future. To be sure, it’s not as if Norris has dominated. He has turned in stronger results of late but only owns a 4.70 ERA in 126 1/3 frames to date. As McCosky explains in detail, though, Norris has made some strides that have created a sense of optimism. The club will owe him a raise on his $1.275MM arbitration salary.

Blaine Hardy Realizes Detroit Tenure Could Be Over

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  • Tigers lefty Blaine Hardy’s season came to an end two weeks ago when he underwent a platelet-rich plasma injection in his elbow. Looking ahead to the offseason, Hardy realizes his Tigers tenure could conclude next. “You know and I know I might not be in Lakeland next year,” the 32-year-old told Chris McCosky of the Detroit News, referring to the team’s spring training home in Florida. Hardy has been a fairly successful reliever in Detroit since he debuted in 2014, but after elbow issues helped limit him to a 4.47 ERA/5.72 FIP with 5.89 K/9 and 2.64 BB/9 in 44 1/3 innings this year, it’s possible the Tigers will non-tender the soon-to-be out-of-options hurler as he readies for his second trip to arbitration. Regardless, Hardy’s glad he decided to call it a year instead of trying to gut out his elbow problems through the season. The Tigers were on the verge of demoting Hardy to Triple-A Toledo before his PRP injection, leading him to tell McCosky: “I had so many people in my corner say it would’ve been career suicide if I decided to go down to Triple-A and keep pitching through this. If something happened, and they found the tear at Triple-A, it would have been hard to retro it back to a big-league deal.”

Tigers Sign Matt Wotherspoon To Minors Deal

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The Tigers signed right-hander Matt Wotherspoon to a minor league contract, MLB Daily Dish’s Andersen Pickard tweets.  Wotherspoon will join the roster at Triple-A Toledo.  Detroit originally drafted Wotherspoon as a 20th-round pick back in 2013, though he chose to remain in college for another year, not turning pro until the Yankees took him in the 34th round of the 2014 draft.

The 27-year-old Wotherspoon made his Major League debut earlier this season, tossing 4 2/3 innings over two games with the Orioles without much success, as he posted a 15.43 ERA over his brief taste of the Show.  He was also twice outrighted off Baltimore’s 40-man roster before being released by the O’s last week.  Over 455 1/3 career innings in the farm systems of the Orioles and Yankees, Wotherspoon has a 3.62 ERA, 9.5 K/9, and 2.93 K/BB rate, though he has struggled to 5.54 ERA over 65 frames at Triple-A Norfolk this season.

Tigers Select Willi Castro

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The Tigers have selected the contract of INF Willi Castro from Triple-A Toledo, the team reports.

Castro, 22, was acquired in a Deadline Day deal last season from Cleveland in exchange for Leonys Martin. The team’s 7th ranked prospect, per FanGraphs, was decent (his 112 wRC+ ranked 51st among all players with at least 200 plate appearances in the International League this season) in 525 PAs for Toledo in ’19, slashing .301/.366/.467 as the team’s primary shortstop. MLB.com lauds the prospect’s “soft hands, actions, and arm strength” at the position while noting that the switch-hitter will need to improve on both sides of the ball to become an everyday player.

Castro was called up to replace INF Niko Goodrum, whose most recent groin strain could be a season-ender. In 472 plate appearances for the club this season, Goodrum posted a solid 1.9 fWAR, though his strikeout rate took off on him during summer’s dog days, and the switch-hitter slashed just .215/.296/.393 against right-handed pitchers on the year.

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