DETROIT -- The Tigers will make some changes to their coaching staff coming off a 76-86 season. First-base coach Anthony Sanders and assistant pitching coach Juan Nieves will not return to the Tigers next season, sources told MLB.com.
The Tigers have not confirmed any changes to their coaching staff. The Athletic first reported the moves.
Nieves has been working alongside pitching coach Chris Fetter since A.J. Hinch’s first season as Tigers manager in 2021. The former Red Sox and Marlins pitching coach first joined the Tigers organization in 2019 as a pitching coach at Triple-A Toledo. Together with fellow assistant pitching coach Robin Lund, the group has had success working with young pitchers coming up through the system, notably Tarik Skubal, Casey Mize, Troy Melton, Jackson Jobe and Reese Olson. The team’s 3.61 ERA ranked third-best in the American League and sixth in the Majors.
Sanders was a big hire by the Tigers last fall after he spent the previous six seasons in the same role with the Orioles. He was expected to further the Tigers’ base running and base stealing awareness after the Tigers’ stolen base totals dropped in back-to-back years. They dropped again this season; their 58 stolen bases marked their lowest total since 2022, and ranked ahead of only the Astros among MLB clubs. Only Kevin McGonigle (12) reached double digits.
In terms of overall base running metrics, the Tigers tied for 22nd among MLB clubs at negative-4 Baserunning Runs, according to Statcast. It was a big drop from the previous three seasons, when they ranked seventh (2025), 10th (2024) and 10th (2023) with plus-7, plus-6 and plus-6 Baserunning Runs, respectively.
With a younger, more athletic positional roster and speedy center fielder Max Clark taking over at leadoff hitter over the final week of this season, the Tigers could be poised for a renewed baserunning approach. They parted ways with third-base coach Joey Cora around midseason, replacing him internally with Major League coach Billy Boyer for the rest of the year. Whether the Tigers keep Boyer there or shift him to another role is unclear, but whoever takes over at first base will be the Tigers’ fifth coach there in six years.