This story was excerpted from Jason Beck’s Tigers Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.
The Tigers have the American League’s most dominant pitcher, Tarik Skubal, under team control for at least one more season, as well as fellow All-Star Casey Mize. They retained the services of Jack Flaherty when he opted in for one more season at $20 million. They have one of baseball’s most effective, versatile lefty relievers in Tyler Holton, and seem to have found their closer in Will Vest. That’s a pretty good start for building a strong pitching staff.
So why does Detroit enter this offseason with pitching as its priority? It’s about all the other spots and the options to fill them.
“We're obviously excited that Jack's coming back,” general manager Jeff Greenberg told reporters Wednesday from baseball’s General Managers Meetings in Las Vegas. “He was a big piece to what we did last year. He wanted to be back. I think it speaks to his comfort here, the fact that he obviously wants to have a big 2026, and his comfort in coming back and doing that as a Tiger. I think we'll still look to add pitching. Obviously that fills a spot that otherwise would've been a question mark, but I still think we're going to be open-minded to looking to add to both the rotation and the 'pen.”
Greenberg furthered the point later in his media session, telling MLive.com’s Evan Woodbery, “We’re going to prioritize pitching.”
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It’s a slight surprise for a club that struggled to score runs for stretches late in the season and into the playoffs. But there’s a reason.
Last offseason showed the importance of not only investing in pitching, but building depth. Detroit struck early by signing Alex Cobb to a one-year, $15 million contract at the start of the Winter Meetings, but the veteran right-hander never threw a pitch for the Tigers due to recurring right hip issues that hampered him before Spring Training began. Cobb’s absence became more glaring as other free-agent starters who signed similar deals elsewhere were pitching effectively, including former Tigers Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer.
Detroit was opportunistic in bringing back Flaherty just before Spring Training, but the void left by Cobb’s injury eventually impacted the club's dealings at the Trade Deadline. With Reese Olson sidelined, Keider Montero inconsistent at midseason and Troy Melton’s innings piling up, the Tigers added two starters at the Deadline, acquiring Chris Paddack from the Twins and Charlie Morton from the Orioles. Paddack was moved to the bullpen in September and was left off the postseason roster. Morton was designated for assignment with a week left in the regular season.
It wasn’t the primary reason the Tigers faded down the stretch and ended up in a Wild Card spot, but it didn’t help.
“When we acquired Paddack and Morton, the goal wasn’t for them to play big roles for us in the postseason,” president of baseball operations Scott Harris said last month.
The starting pitching market at the Deadline, Harris said, was shallow enough that none of the other potential options probably would’ve started in the playoffs for them, either.
That raises the importance of solidifying the rotation now, rather than counting on help later.
“I think part of the process this week is just starting to gather information on what that market could look like,” Greenberg said Wednesday. “Prices were high at the Deadline. Prices were relatively high last offseason. We'll see where it goes, but I think this week begins the process of gathering information to start.”
Having Skubal -- barring a trade -- along with Mize and Flaherty, plus Melton and Montero, is a good starting point. But the inclusion of Olson on the Tigers’ medical update Wednesday as completing rehab daily, rather than him being on a throwing progression or a normal workout program, provided a reminder of how quickly situations can change.
The injury situation is better in the bullpen, where Beau Brieske, Jason Foley and Sean Guenther are all on throwing progressions. But Trade Deadline acquisitions Kyle Finnegan, Rafael Montero and Paul Sewald are all free agents, along with Tommy Kahnle. The Tigers have a good foundation with Vest, Holton, Brenan Hanifee and Brant Hurter, plus an intriguing option in Chase Lee and prospect depth with Dylan Smith (ranked by MLB Pipeline as Detroit’s No. 20 prospect), Tyler Mattison and RJ Petit (No. 30). But they need more innings and they need more quality, particularly with a high-strikeout reliever or two.
That doesn’t mean the Tigers will go big for a star closer like Edwin Díaz or Devin Williams. Simply bringing back Finnegan would be a good start. But bringing in next-tier help like Ryan Helsley, a Tigers trade option last summer before he struggled down the stretch with the Mets, would provide a boost.