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Ryan Kreidler

Tigers Recall Jace Jung

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Jace Jung is back in the big leagues, as the Tigers recalled the third base prospect from Triple-A Toledo. Detroit optioned Ryan Kreidler in a corresponding move.

It’s the second major league call for the 24-year-old Jung. Detroit selected his contract last August. The 2022 first-round pick got regular run at third base down the stretch. He reached base at an excellent .362 clip over his first 94 big league plate appearances. Jung struck out 29 times without hitting a home run, though. The Tigers made a run at Alex Bregman over the offseason, confirming they weren’t firmly committed to Jung as their starting third baseman going into this year.

Once Bregman signed with Boston, Jung projected as the starting third baseman entering camp. He didn’t perform during Spring Training, hitting .121 with one longball in 14 games. The Tigers optioned him midway through camp. With Matt Vierling on the injured list, they went with a nearly even playing time split between Andy Ibáñez, Javier Báez and Zach McKinstry. They’ve used McKinstry in right field over the past few days.

Báez seems likely to join him in the outfield. He’s starting in center field tonight against Padres righty Randy Vásquez. Chris McCosky of The Detroit News relays that Báez is likely to play regularly in center for the near future. That’d push Riley Greene back to left field while leaving third base to a Jung/Ibáñez platoon. Kreidler had started 14 games in center field this season, but he’s out to an untenable .105/.190/.105 start at the plate.

Jung brings a lot more offensive upside than Kreidler offers. He’s a .257/.379/.467 hitter over parts of four seasons in the minors. He put his underwhelming spring behind him and was off to a strong start to the year in Toledo. Jung has three homers with a .239/.409/.463 slash through 88 plate appearances. He has fanned 22 times while drawing 20 walks — the second-most of Triple-A hitters.

An outfield of Greene, Báez and McKinstry was certainly not Detroit’s plan entering Spring Training. They’ve needed to adapt with four outfield options (Vierling, Parker Meadows, Wenceel Pérez and Manuel Margot) on the injured list. It seemed Kerry Carpenter might join them after he departed yesterday’s game with right hamstring soreness. Carpenter is not playing tonight but was not immediately placed on the injured list, as he remains day-to-day.

Tigers Send Jason Foley, Andrew Chafin To Minors

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The Tigers are making some surprising roster cuts ahead of the start of the season. Per Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press, the club is sending both right-hander Jason Foley and left-hander Andrew Chafin to Triple-A Toledo. Foley is on the 40-man roster and will be optioned. Chafin is a veteran on a minor league deal with certain guaranteed opt-out dates but Petzold relays that the southpaw is expected to report to Toledo.

Foley, 29, was last optioned to the minors in April of 2022. He was recalled in May of that year and has been up with the club since then, seemingly establishing himself as a bonafide major leaguer. He’s never had huge strikeout numbers but has succeeded with good control and a grounder-heavy approach.

Overall, he has 199 2/3 innings in the bigs with a 3.16 earned run average, 18.1% strikeout rate, 6.2% walk rate and 54.1% ground ball rate. He has emerged as a key leverage arm for the club in recent years. In 2023, he secured 28 holds and seven saves. Last year, he largely took over the closer’s role, racking up 28 saves and eight holds. He qualified for arbitration and is making $3.15MM this year.

In this year’s camp, his 6.14 ERA certainly looks ugly, but it’s a tiny sample of 7 1/3 innings and the numbers under the hood aren’t nearly as bad. He struck out 10 opponents without issuing a walk, with one hit-by-pitch the only free pass of the spring. The five earned runs he allowed came over his first four appearances. The past four were scoreless. A .429 batting average on balls in play and 62.5% strand rate point to much of the damage against him being bad luck.

All in all, it’s a pretty surprising move. It seems as though Brenan Hanifee will get the final bullpen spot over Foley, per Petzold. Hanifee has a strong 2.36 ERA in his career but in just 34 1/3 innings. Similar to Foley, he’s a ground ball guy, with an 18.2% strikeout rate and 54.1% grounder rate thus far.

Ultimately, Opening Day is just one day on the calendar. Bullpen churn is pretty common in today’s game, so Foley could be back up in short order. Still, it’s notable when last year’s closer is sent to the minors without much obvious reason. If Foley spends significant time in the minors this year, it could impact his trajectory. He comes into 2025 with his service clock at three years and 33 days, putting him on track for free agency after 2027. If he spends enough time on optional assignment this season to come up short of the four-year mark, that trip to the open market would be pushed back by a year.

The news on Chafin is also surprising. He’s a pretty reliable veteran with over a decade in the big leagues. He has a 3.42 career ERA and posted a 3.51 ERA last year. Even settling for a minor league deal was a surprise, but at least that deal came with a strong $2.5MM base salary for cracking the majors.

Like Foley, Chafin’s spring numbers look bad at a glance but not so much under a magnifying glass. He posted an ERA of 12.00 by allowing eight earned runs in six innings. He also gave out six walks. However, six of those eight earned runs and five of the six walks were surrendered in his first two innings pitched. He only allowed two runs and one walk in his final four innings, with the final two innings being scoreless and walk-less with five strikeouts.

Given his reputation, it would be fair to write-off his poor spring stats as small-sample weirdness but the Tigers evidently don’t want to make room for him. He’ll report to Toledo and hope for a call-up but he’ll have chances to opt-out on May 1 and June 1.

In another notable move, Petzold reports that utility player Ryan Kreidler will make the Opening Day roster. Kreidler had previously been optioned to the minors but it was reported earlier this week that the club’s injuries might open a spot for him. The Tigers have been hit hard by the injury bug, particularly in center field, with Parker Meadows, Wenceel Pérez and Matt Vierling all slated to start the season on the injured list.

Kreidler has played more infield in his career but the club apparently considers him viable enough in center to bring him up for extra coverage there. It’s unclear who will get the bulk of the playing time in center, but it may be some combination of Kreidler, Riley Greene and Manuel Margot.

Photo courtesy of Junfu Han, Imagn Images

Wenceel Pérez To Miss At Least A Month Due To Back Inflammation

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Tigers outfielder Wenceel Pérez has been dealing with back tightness throughout the spring. For a while, it seemed as though he would get over it and crack the Opening Day roster. But today, president of baseball operations Scott Harris told reporters that the outfielder will get an injection in his lower back and will miss at least one month. Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic was among those to pass along the news.

At the start of camp, Pérez seemed likely to start the season on optional assignment in Triple-A. However, a series of injuries to the Detroit outfield moved him up the depth chart. Matt Vierling has a rotator cuff strain in his right shoulder and will start the season on the injured list. Parker Meadows has been dealing with a more confounding injury to his musculocutaneous nerve in his upper right arm. The Tigers recently announced that he would be shut down for about four weeks.

Those injuries prompted the Tigers to sign Manuel Margot after he was released by the Brewers, having previously signed a minor league deal with the latter club. The Tigers made that signing official today and placed Meadows on the 60-day IL. That means he won’t be able to rejoin the big league club until late May.

In addition to prompting the Margot deal, it seemed as though the injuries would give Pérez a chance to break camp with the club. But the back tightness that has been ailing him throughout the spring couldn’t be shaken off. He’ll spend some time on the shelf after getting his injection and won’t be available for a few weeks.

The club will now have to figure out how to proceed without Vierling, Pérez or Meadows for now. Riley Greene is sure to be part of the solution, though it doesn’t sound as though making him the regular center fielder is a consideration. Per Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press, Greene will play center from time to time but is still likely to spend most of his playing time in the corners. That also seems to be the case for Margot, per Evan Woodbery of MLive Media Group.

Therefore, it seems like the primary corner guys might be Greene and Kerry Carpenter, who both hit left-handed. The right-handed Margot could perhaps help shield those two from tough lefties. As for center field, while Greene and Margot might factor in a bit, it seems Ryan Kreidler could be a key part of the solution.

Kreidler was optioned to Toledo two days ago but he has rejoined the big league club as the Tigers play the Giants in San Francisco tonight and tomorrow. “Ryan is an elite defender,” Harris said, per Petzold. “He makes our defense better when he’s on the field. Pitching and defense is going to be really important for us moving forward.”

The 27-year-old Kreidler has a line of just .147/.212/.193 in his 167 major league plate appearances but he has a much better line of .236/.342/.416 across the minors over the past four years. He’s done that while playing the outfield as well as the three infield positions to the left of first base.

It’s also possible that further solutions will come from outside the organization. As mentioned, the Tigers just scooped up Margot after he was released by the Brewers. Several others have been cut recently and more guys will shake loose in the coming days as all clubs set their rosters prior to Opening Day.

The Tigers’ Shortstop Situation

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The Tigers have clearly been focused on upgrading their infield this offseason. They signed Gleyber Torres to take over second base. It’s only a one-year deal but they are nonetheless willing to bump Colt Keith over to first and Spencer Torkelson into a part-time role or maybe even the minors. They hung around in the Alex Bregman market, indicating some desire to install him at third and block Jace Jung, though Bregman ultimately landed with the Red Sox.

None of that addresses the shortstop situation, however, so the club will seemingly head into camp with a positional battle there. That’s a risky but defensive strategy, as the winter market didn’t feature many better alternatives. On the trade market, Bo Bichette was in a few rumors but never seemed to be truly available.

In free agency, Willy Adames was the only healthy everyday shortstop. He signed a seven-year, $182MM deal with the Giants. The Tigers certainly could have matched that, given their fairly clean future payroll ledger, but it never seemed likely that they would. They already have a lot of money dedicated to the position, as the one big deal still on the books is for a shortstop, and they also have some potential long-term solutions just a bit over the horizon.

Let’s take a look at the current picture, the short term and the long term, as spring training is ramping up.

The Expensive Bounceback Candidate

Javier Báez

The struggles of Báez in Detroit are no big secret at this point. The Tigers signed him to a six-year, $140MM deal going into 2022. He had just finished a six-year stretch in which he hit .271/.312/.490 for a 107 wRC+ with strong defensive and baserunning grades, allowing him to produce 21.9 wins above replacement, per FanGraphs.

In his first year as a Tiger, he hit .238/.278/.393 for a wRC+ of 89, a disappointing but not disastrous performance. He fell even further in 2023, producing a .222/.267/.325 line and 63 wRC+. Another drop came last year, with Báez coming up with a dismal line of .184/.221/.294 and a 48 wRC+. His defensive metrics have also fallen in that time.

The most favorable view of Báez right now is that his recent nosedive has been health related. He only got into 80 games last year, missing time due to lumbar spine and hip inflammation. He underwent season-ending surgery in August. It didn’t come out of nowhere. Back in February of last year, Báez told Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press that he dealt with lower back discomfort throughout the 2022 and 2023 seasons.

That probably sounds like a convenient excuse but it could perhaps explain why his performance has dropped so precipitously. If the surgery has addressed his issues and he can get back to full strength in 2025, that could allow him to reverse his recent trends. Even if he doesn’t fully return to All-Star form, there would be value in simply being less bad.

If the struggles continue, the Tigers could face a tough choice. Teams are generally reluctant to give up on players when there’s still so much of the deal remaining. It’s pretty rare for a guy on an eight- or nine-figure deal to be released with more than two years left on the deal. Báez still has three years left on his pact but that will gradually move closer to two as the summer rolls along. Even if he doesn’t get released, there’s a chance he gets pushed into being an expensive utility/bench player.

The Possible Short-Term Alternative

Trey Sweeney

Sweeney, 25 in April, served as a passable fill-in while Báez was recovering from surgery last year. He made his major league debut by getting into 36 games down the stretch as the Tigers were engineering their amazing comeback. Sweeney slashed .218/.269/.373 for a wRC+ of 81. His defense was graded as above average, in a small sample of 294 innings.

That was far better than anything Báez has done recently, but was also significantly less than Báez at his peak. Whether Sweeney is the best option likely depends on which version of Báez is going to show up in 2025.

Sweeney’s not really considered a top prospect. Baseball America currently ranks him eighth in the system. He’s has some good numbers in the minors but there are some concerns about the strikeouts. He slashed .267/.345/.450 in Triple-A last year but was punched out in 26.7% of his plate appearances. In his brief big league time, he had a similar 26.9% strikeout rate.

The ceiling isn’t as high as some of the other players mentioned here, but Sweeney has been to the big leagues and handled himself well enough. If things go south with Báez again, the Tigers will have a fallback. But since he has options, he might be playing every day in Triple-A to start the season while Báez tries to get back on track.

The Immediate Depth

Zach McKinstry/Ryan Kreidler

McKinstry, 30 in April, isn’t a huge bat but is a fine bench/utility guy. He has 1,207 major league plate appearances to this point in his career with a .220/.285/.357 line and 79 wRC+. But he has also stolen 40 bases, including 16 in each of the past two years. He got those 16 bags last year without getting caught. He has also lined up at all three outfield spots and the three infield positions to the left of first base, with pretty solid marks all over. Despite the tepid bat, FanGraphs has credited him with 3.0 wins above replacement in 323 games over the past three seasons. He’s out of options and will be on the big league bench.

Kreidler, 27, is still looking to get to that level. He has a line of .147/.212/.193 in his three-year big league career, though in just 167 plate appearances. But his shortstop defense has been considered above average, in addition to playing second base, third base and a bit of outfield. He had a rough showing offensively in the minors last year but has been better in the past. He still has an option and could be ticketed for Triple-A to start the year.

The Possible Shortstops Of The Future

Kevin McGonigle/Bryce Rainer

On Baseball America’s Top 100 list, there are two Detroit shortstop prospects. McGonigle has the #23 spot with Rainer at #60. The brief take on the situation is that McGonigle is the better pure hitter, and closer to the majors, but there’s more of a risk that he’ll need to move off shortstop in the future.

Just 20 years old right now, McGonigle was taken 37th overall in 2023 with a competitive balance pick. Since that draft selection, he has played in 95 minor league games, stepping to the plate 421 times. A massive 15.2% of those plate appearances have resulted in a walk, compared to a strikeout rate of just 9%. There were only six home runs in there but his .310/.412/.443 combined line nonetheless translates to a 143 wRC+. He finished last year at High-A, so getting to Double-A and/or Triple-A in 2025 seem like realistic outcomes.

Rainer is only 19, having just been drafted a few months ago. The Tigers took him with the 11th overall pick in 2024 out of Harvard-Westlake High School in Los Angeles. They didn’t get him into any minor league games after that draft, so he still has no college or professional experience to speak of.

Still, the expectations are high. As mentioned, BA has him 60th overall already. MLB Pipeline has him at #53, ESPN at #79 and Keith Law of The Athletic at #70. He didn’t crack the FanGraphs list but that outlet highlighted him as a player who has a strong chance of charging into the top 100 once he makes his professional debut. There are some questions about contact ability but his power and throwing arm are considered to be huge assets.

Defensively, McGonigle is considered to have the arm for shortstop but his range and motion are more questionable. Rainer is perhaps a better bet to stick at short but he also still needs to get his feet wet as a professional.

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Neither McGonigle nor Rainer have even reached Double-A yet, so there’s still some time before things get really tight. But Báez has three years left on his deal and many fans already calling for him to go. There’s no way for the Tigers to get any of that money back, so the best-case scenario would still be a Báez bounceback. If that doesn’t come to pass, the club could pivot to Sweeney in the short term and then McGonigle and Rainer in the long term. Though prospects don’t always work out as hoped, so there are no guarantees there.

How the chips fall should be impactful for the future of the Tigers. They have no serious commitments on their long-term payroll apart from Báez. Their recent six-year offer to Bregman shows they are willing to get more aggressive. If they can find an internal solution at short, there should be resources available for other parts of the roster.

Tigers Recall Dillon Dingler, Select Bryan Sammons

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The Tigers announced a series of roster moves today, recalling catcher Dillon Dingler and infielder Ryan Kreidler. They also selected the contract of left-hander Bryan Sammons. One active roster spot was opened by last night’s Carson Kelly trade. The Tigers opened two more spots by optioning left-hander Easton Lucas and placing shortstop Javier Báez on the medical emergency/bereavement list. To open a 40-man spot for Sammons, right-hander Casey Mize was transferred to the 60-day injured list. Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reported last night that Dingler would be coming up to the majors for the first time.

Dingler, 25, was a second-round pick of the Tigers in 2020 and has been considered one of their top prospects since then. His defense behind the plate is considered strong but there’s more uncertainty with his offense, as he can hit for power but also strikes out a lot.

He has stepped to the plate just under 1500 times in his minor league career thus far, getting punched out in 27.5% of those. But he’s also displayed that power with 59 home runs. Overall, he’s hit .257/.344/.459 for a wRC+ of 114.

It appears he has made notable strides in the strikeout department this year, as he has only been punched out in 20.3% of his 301 Triple-A plate appearances. But he’s still hit 17 home runs and drawn walks at a 10% clip. All that leads to a .308/.379/.559 batting line and 137 wRC+. With Kelly now out of the picture, Dingler figures to get a decent amount of playing time, sharing the catching duties with Jake Rogers.

Sammons, 29, gets the call for the first time as well. He was drafted by the Twins back in 2017 and has never really been a top prospect. But he has been starting in the minors and might be needed to soak up some innings. Jack Flaherty was supposed to start tonight but was scratched as he’s likely to be traded at any moment. Beau Brieske is starting tonight in what is likely to be a bullpen game.

That could leave Sammons taking on some bulk innings. He has made 17 Triple-A starts this year with 84 innings pitched. In that time, he has a 4.18 ERA, 21.8% strikeout rate, 9.5% walk rate and 36.4% ground ball rate.

As for Mize, he landed on the IL July 3 due to a left hamstring strain. He’ll now be ineligible to return until 60 days from that point, which would be early September. Manager A.J. Hinch said it would be a “photo finish” to get back by that time, per Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic on X, so he might be able to return when first eligible.

Tigers Notes: Baez, Kreidler, McKinstry, Flaherty

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Javier Báez’s rough season continues, as the Tigers placed the veteran shortstop on the 10-day injured list before tonight’s game against the Nationals. The placement, which is retroactive to June 9, is due to lumbar spine inflammation. Ryan Kreidler is up from Triple-A Toledo to take the open active roster spot.

Báez told the Detroit beat that he was headed to Florida for additional testing (link via Cody Stavenhagen of the Athletic). The Tigers haven’t provided a timeline for his return, though he’s expected to be out beyond the minimal stint. Báez has battled back discomfort dating to Spring Training, which could be a contributing factor to the worst performance of his career.

The two-time All-Star has only hit one home run over 196 plate appearances. He’s hitting .183/.209/.247 across 53 games. Among hitters with 150+ trips to the plate, only Mickey Moniak has a lower on-base percentage. Tim Anderson and Moniak are the only such hitters who have made less of a power impact. Báez has rated as a slightly below-average defender over 451 2/3 innings at shortstop. The overall production is well below replacement level.

Báez now carries a .223/.264/.344 slash line in 333 games since signing a six-year, $140MM free agent contract with Detroit. Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris downplayed the chances of moving on from Báez entirely in an appearance on MLB Network late last month. That won’t need to be a consideration while he’s on the injured list, but the Tigers clearly need much better production out of the position. Detroit is last in all three triple slash stats from their shortstops on the year.

For now, that task will fall on Kreidler and Zach McKinstry. Manager A.J. Hinch indicated that duo will split the shortstop reps while Báez is on the shelf. The lefty-hitting McKinstry and righty-swinging Kreidler will form something of a platoon, although Hinch indicated Kreidler won’t be completely shielded from right-handed pitching. With the Nats starting lefty Mitchell Parker this evening, Kreidler is in the lineup for his first MLB work of the season.

The UCLA product appeared in 37 big league contests between 2022-23. Kreidler didn’t hit much in that limited look, turning in a .165/.220/.209 slash over 102 plate appearances. He owns a .242/.362/.448 mark with a lofty 27.1% strikeout rate in parts of four seasons with Toledo. McKinstry has hit .225/.296/.341 in 624 MLB plate appearances since the Tigers acquired him from the Cubs just before the start of last season. He’s a career .219/.284/.365 hitter versus right-handed pitching.

While the Tigers are patching things together on the infield, they seem to have dodged a bullet in the rotation. Jack Flaherty exited last week’s start against the Rangers after experiencing back tightness. He hasn’t pitched since then but seems on track to avoid the injured list. As noted by Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free-Press, Flaherty received an injection yesterday and is lined up to take the ball during this weekend’s series against the Astros. Signed to a one-year pillow contract over the winter, Flaherty is pitching at an All-Star level. He owns a 3.22 ERA while striking out more than a third of his opponents over his first 12 starts.

Tigers’ Ryan Kreidler Undergoes Finger Surgery

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The Tigers announced yesterday that infielder Ryan Kreidler underwent surgery for a fractured right index finger on April 11. Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press was among those to relay the news (X link). The club didn’t announce when they expect Kreidler to return to action but it seems fair to expect an absence of at least a few more weeks. He is on the club’s 40-man roster but didn’t break camp with the Tigers and was optioned to Triple-A Toledo to start the year, having now been put on the minor league injured list.

The Tigers are currently operating with diminished infield depth at the major league level, since both Gio Urshela and Andy Ibáñez have landed on the IL this month, each due to a strained hamstring. Matt Vierling has taken over the everyday third base job from Urshela of late, while Buddy Kennedy has taken over for Ibáñez, serving as a bench infielder alongside Zach McKinstry.

Kreidler, 26, could have been in the mix for such a gig were it not for this injury. He has taken 102 plate appearances for the Tigers over the previous two seasons, though he’s hit just .165/.220/.209 in his major league career thus far. He’s naturally performed better in the minors, with a line of .241/.340/.417 across different levels in his career.

He has played the three infield positions to the left of first base as well as some center field, which could make him a valuable utility piece if he could bring a bit more offense up to the majors. Baseball America ranked him as one of the club’s top ten prospects going into 2022 and 2023.

Staying on the field has been an issue for Kreidler in recent years. He suffered a right hand fracture in April of 2022 and was limited to 86 games that year, 60 in the minors and 26 in the majors. Last year, he required core muscle surgery and got into 74 games, 11 in the majors.

He is now once again on the shelf and looking at a stretch of missed time. After a handful of injury setbacks in recent years, he and the Tigers will naturally be hoping that he can quickly get over this issue and get some regular reps this year. He is optionable for the rest of this year and will still have one option year left going forward.

Trevor Rosenthal To Undergo Elbow Surgery

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Veteran right-hander Trevor Rosenthal is slated undergo elbow surgery next week, the Tigers announced within their latest wave of injury updates on minor league players. The former All-Star has been attempting a comeback with the Tigers, but he’s now headed for a revision on a prior Tommy John procedure. Detroit also announced that infielder Ryan Kreidler underwent core muscle surgery and that lefty Miguel Del Pozo had Tommy John surgery.

Rosenthal, 33, hasn’t pitched in the Majors since the 2020 season and has just 39 big league frames under his belt since the conclusion of the 2017 season. Injuries have derailed the career of the former Cardinals closer, who underwent Tommy John surgery in 2017 and thoracic outlet surgery in 2021. Rosenthal also had surgery to repair a torn labrum in his hip during the 2021 season.

A healthy Rosenthal has proven himself capable of being one of the sport’s top relievers. From 2012-15, he boasted a 2.66 ERA and 30.4% strikeout rate, twice reaching 45 saves in a season along the way. His 2019 return from that 2017 Tommy John procedure was a disaster, but Rosenthal pitched 23 2/3 innings of 1.90 ERA ball while punching out 41.8% of his opponents during the shortened 2020 season. This will now be Rosenthal’s third surgery of note since his last big league pitch, however. He pitched in just three minor league games with the Tigers this year before landing on the injured list.

Kreidler, 25, has appeared in 37 games for the Tigers dating back to 2022 but has just a .165/.220/.209 slash in 102 big league plate appearances. He’s slashed .253/.374/.466 with 18 home runs and 22 steals through 446 plate appearances at the Triple-A level in his career, however, and is regarded as an above-average defender who can handle multiple spots around the infield (third base, shortstop and second base). He’s currently in physical therapy following the surgery. A timetable for his return wasn’t provided.

The 30-year-old Del Pozo returned to the Tigers on a minor league deal this offseason. He’d previously pitched 5 1/3 frames as a Tiger back in 2021 and also spent the 2022 season in their Triple-A bullpen, pitching to a 3.88 ERA in 53 1/3 frames. Del Pozo, who’s allowed 20 runs in 18 1/3 big league innings but has a more palatable 4.23 ERA in four Triple-A campaigns, appeared in just six games this season before landing on the injured list. The timing of this surgery will shelve him until late in the 2024 season and potentially all the way into the 2025 season.

IL Activations: Hughes, Nootbaar, Kepler, Lorenzen

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Catching up on notable players returning from the injured list today…

LATEST MOVES

  • The Cubs activated left-hander Brandon Hughes from the 15-day IL, and outfielder Nelson Velazquez was optioned to Triple-A to create roster space.  Hughes was bothered by inflammation in his left knee during Spring Training, so Chicago placed him on the IL prior to Opening Day so Hughes could recover and then complete his ramp-up progress.  In an impressive rookie season, Hughes posted a 3.12 ERA and an above-average 28.3% strikeout rate (albeit with a subpar walk rate) over 57 2/3 innings out of the Cubs’ bullpen.

EARLIER TODAY

  • The Cardinals activated Lars Nootbaar from the 10-day IL, and sent Juan Yepez to Triple-A in the corresponding move.  Nootbaar was in the St. Louis lineup for the first time since Opening Day, when he injured his left thumb diving into a base.  While the Cardinals’ outfield depth chart might prevent Nootbaar from true everyday duty, he is still expected to get a lot of playing time as a left-handed hitter capable of playing all three outfield spots.  Jordan Walker’s emergence has only added to a crowded outfield picture that also includes Nootbaar, Tyler O’Neill, Alec Burleson, Dylan Carlson, Yepez, and utilityman Brendan Donovan.
  • The Twins activated outfielder Max Kepler from the 10-day IL, as Kepler returned after missing the minimum 10 days while recovering from right patellar tendinitis.  Minnesota optioned outfielder Matt Wallner to Triple-A in the corresponding move.  Kepler’s return will bring a bit of relief for the injury-plagued Twins, and he’ll look for something of a reset to his season after playing in only four games prior to his IL stint.  Kepler is entering the final guaranteed year of his contract, and will be a free agent this winter unless the Twins exercise a $10MM club option for 2024.
  • Michael Lorenzen made his first start of the season today, as the Tigers activated the right-hander from the 15-day IL.  Unsurprisingly, Lorenzen showed some rust, allowing six earned runs over four innings in what ended up being a 7-6 comeback win for Detroit over San Francisco.  A left groin strain has kept Lorenzen on the shelf, but going forward, he is expected to contribute in the Tigers’ rotation after signing a one-year, $8.5MM free agent deal during the offseason.  Along with activating Lorenzen, Detroit also called up southpaw Tyler Holton from Triple-A, and sent righty Garrett Hill and infielder Ryan Kreidler to Triple-A.

Tigers’ Uncertain Outfield Offers Chance For Young Players To Carve Out A Role

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The Tigers have had a fairly quiet offseason. First-year baseball operations leader Scott Harris has shied away from long-term additions on the heels of the team’s “Murphy’s law” 2022 campaign. The club took a couple upside dice rolls on Matt Boyd and Michael Lorenzen for the rotation, likely with an eye towards a possible deadline deal if they get off to strong starts. They’ve shipped out Gregory Soto and Joe Jiménez and could consider further subtractions from the bullpen.

Detroit hasn’t added any slam-dunk regulars on the position player side over the past few months. They brought in a couple upper level players in the Soto deal who could factor into the mix. No one acquired this offseason should be guaranteed an everyday job, and the lineup-wide underperformance last year means there’s plenty of uncertainty around the diamond. That’s particularly true in the outfield, where Detroit has a handful of options who could vie for a spot in A.J. Hinch’s lineup early in the year.

Lineup Locks

Greene’s a lock for the center field job if healthy. The former fifth overall pick has raked throughout his minor league career and entered 2022 as one of the top handful of prospects in the game. He looked to be trending towards an MLB job out of camp last year but a Spring Training foot fracture kept him on the injured list and required some ramp-up time at Triple-A Toledo.

The Tigers promoted the left-handed hitter in the middle of June. He was the club’s center fielder from then forward, starting 93 games. Greene hit .253/.321/.362 with five home runs through his first 418 MLB plate appearances. While it wasn’t the eye-popping debut enjoyed by some other rookies in the class, hitting at a roughly league level in the majors as a 21-year-old is no small feat. He hit a few too many grounders but posted above-average exit velocities and solid contact skills. It’s a strong offensive foundation and he’s arguably the most important player in the organization. Some prospect evaluators have suggested he might eventually be a better fit for left field than center, but there’s no real reason for Detroit to move him to a corner in what’s going to be an evaluative year anyhow.

Like Greene, Meadows will also be an everyday player if healthy. Unfortunately, he’s coming off an almost totally lost season. Acquired from the Rays during Spring Training, he only appeared in 36 games with Detroit during his first year as a Tiger. He battled vertigo-like symptoms early in the year, then lost time after contracting COVID-19. While attempting to ramp back up, he suffered strains in both Achilles tendons. Towards the end of the season, he and the club agreed to shut down his rehab so he could focus on his mental health.

Getting Meadows right both physically and mentally is obviously the top priority and a prerequisite to him rediscovering his past success. He’s shown the ability to be an impact left-handed power bat at his best, twice topping 25 home runs during his time in Tampa Bay. Meadows is limited to the corner outfield or designated hitter and should get extended run somewhere, assuming he’s ready to return to the diamond. With two remaining seasons of arbitration control, he could be a deadline trade candidate if he gets back on track.

Immediate MLB Mix

Baddoo looked like a great find for Detroit’s scouting staff in 2021. A Rule 5 draftee from the Minnesota system, he stuck on the roster and played in 124 games as a rookie. Despite making the jump directly from High-A, the left-handed hitter put up a solid .259/.330/.436 line with 13 homers and 18 stolen bases over his first 461 plate appearances in the big leagues. It’d have been a strong showing for any player but was particularly impressive for a Rule 5 selection.

The Tigers secured his long-term contractual rights and opened last season with Baddoo in center field. His second year against big league arms was a significant struggle. He stumbled to a .204/.289/.269 line across 225 trips to the plate, seeing his power production and hard contact rate decline. The Tigers optioned him to Toledo in early May. He responded to the demotion extremely well, hitting .300/.405/.500 in 30 games during his first real upper minors action. Detroit recalled him around the All-Star Break but he again hit at a below-average level down the stretch.

Baddoo is still just 24. He’s shown a patient plate approach at the MLB level and plays plus defense in the corner outfield (though he’s stretched in center field). His strong Triple-A performance means 2022 wasn’t a complete lost year, though he’ll need to make more of an offensive impact against MLB pitching to establish himself. He still has two minor league options remaining, so the Tigers can keep him in Detroit or Toledo depending on his performance.

A former 19th-round draftee, Carpenter wasn’t regarded by most evaluators as more than an organizational depth player heading into last season. He altered that perception with a breakout showing in the upper minors. Between Double-A Erie and Toledo, Carpenter connected on 30 home runs with a massive .313/.380/.645 line over 400 plate appearances. He earned his first MLB call in August and hit another six longballs with a .252/.310/.485 slash over 31 games.

The 25-year-old has put himself firmly in the mix for playing time. There’s still some skepticism about his viability as a long-term regular, though. He’s limited to the corners and regarded as a below-average defender there, raising the possibility he’s best suited for DH work. He has big power but an aggressive offensive approach that could limit his on-base marks. Baseball America named him the #8 prospect in the Detroit system last month, calling him a possible low-end regular or lefty platoon bat. While that would still be a great outcome for a 19th-round pick, Carpenter should get a chance to see if he can outperform that projection this year. He still has all three options remaining.

Acquired from the Phillies in the Soto deal, the 26-year-old Vierling steps right into the outfield equation. He’s appeared in 151 games with Philadelphia over the past two seasons, hitting .260/.309/.374 through 434 plate appearances. After accounting for the Phils’ hitter-friendly ballpark, that checked in 12 percentage points below league average, as measured by wRC+. He hasn’t hit for a ton of power and has walked at just a 6.2% clip, tamping down his on-base numbers.

While Vierling hasn’t established himself against big league pitching, he’s shown some interesting traits. He’s made hard contact at an excellent 48.2% clip while demonstrating strong bat-to-ball skills. A right-handed hitter, he’s posted solid numbers against lefties (.307/.343/.423) while struggling with same-handed pitchers (.227/.285/.339). Vierling bounced around the diamond in Philadelphia, playing all three outfield spots with occasional looks on the infield dirt.

Public defensive metrics haven’t liked his work in center field. He’s probably better suited for a corner while covering center field and second or third base in a pinch. It’s at least easy to see him carving out a multi-positional role against southpaws with the potential to take on more responsibility if he can translate his promising underlying offensive indicators into more consistent production. He has one remaining option season.

Multi-Positional Options

Also part of the Soto deal with Philadelphia, Maton’s a left-handed hitting utilityman. He’s mostly an infielder but could see some time in the corner outfield if the Tigers are looking for ways to get him in the lineup. He owns a .254/.330/.434 line in 87 career MLB games and posted a strong .261/.368/.436 showing in 250 Triple-A plate appearances last year.

It’s essentially the same story with Kreidler, whom BA ranked as Detroit’s #9 prospect. He has spent virtually his entire career as an infielder, playing mostly shortstop in the minor leagues. Kreidler’s professional outfield experience consists of two MLB innings of center field work last season, so it’s possible Detroit doesn’t consider him a real option for the outfield. It’s not uncommon to see multi-positional infielders eventually branch out into corner outfield work, though, as expanded defensive flexibility increases their utility off the bench. Kreidler’s a good enough athlete it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Tigers experiment with him in the outfield at some point. The more straightforward path to playing time for both Maton and Kreidler is at second/third base, though.

Haase has some left field experience in his MLB career. He’s primarily a bat-first catcher who has spent the bulk of his time behind the plate. As things stand, he looks like Detroit’s primary catcher. If a player like Donny Sands, Jake Rogers or non-roster invitee Andrew Knapp seizes the bulk of the catching time, Haase could factor into the corner outfield mix more frequently.

Late-Season Possibilities

Detroit also has a pair of notable outfield prospects who could factor into the mix in 2023. Former second-round pick Parker Meadows had a .275/.354/.466 line with 16 longballs and 17 stolen bases in 113 games for Erie last year. He walked at a strong 10.6% clip while cutting his strikeout rate to a career-low 18.4%. He just turned 23 and is already on the 40-man roster.

Justyn-Henry Malloy, 23 next month, came over from the Braves in the Jiménez trade. The right-handed hitter traversed three minor league levels in 2022, briefly reaching Triple-A after strong showings in both High-A and Double-A. Malloy walked at a massive 18.1% clip en route to a .268/.403/.421 line over 54 Double-A contests. He’s not yet on the 40-man.

Both Meadows and Malloy figure to start the upcoming season with Toledo. There’s no need for Detroit to push either player to the majors before the front office is convinced they’re ready. With another strong upper minors performance, either could put themselves on the map for a midseason promotion. In the interim, the Tigers figure to get looks at players like Baddoo, Carpenter and Vierling to sort out where that group fits in the long-term picture.

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