Detroit Tigers Could Have Alex Bregman Backup Plan Already Waiting In Wings
The Detroit Tigers are still involved in the pursuit of the consensus top free agent available in Houston Astros star third baseman Alex Bregman.
In what has been a long and painful roller coaster ride of a bidding process for the two-time All-Star, the Tigers have somehow remained at the center of the sweepstakes and by all accounts may even have the best offer on the table from the suitors left standing. But if that is to be believed and the deal isn't done yet, there's a reason for that.
You cannot simply force a player who doesn't want to be somewhere to suddenly want to be there. It's only speculation to say he doesn't want to be in Detroit, but at a certain point when free agency goes on this long one has to wonder.
Missing out on Bregman would sting. But there's an argument to be made the Tigers have a replacement in place who could be the smarter move in the long term.
Assuming the Astros star winds up signing elsewhere, it's likely that Jace Jung will get a real shot at manning the hot corner in 2025, a shot that he at the least deserves.
Nobody is saying Jung is or will ever be a better player than Bregman, but giving the former first round pick, now 24 years old, the chance to prove he can be the answer at a fraction of the cost is sound logic.
Jung made his big league debut this past season. He played in 34 games for the Tigers and he batted .241 with a .666 OPS.
He was also dealing with a wrist injury that required surgery at the conclusion of the season, so those numbers while playing through an injury is actually impressive.
Jung raked at Triple-A Toledo in 2024, posting an .831 OPS with 14 home runs and 60 RBIs in 91 games. Between his Triple-A numbers and respectable Major League numbers in a small sample, he warrants serious consideration for a starting role.
Understandably, everyone wants the splash of bringing in a superstar like Bregman. The best teams in baseball are spending money and winning championships.
The only thing better than bringing in stars is developing them yourself, and Jung absolutely has a chance to be a future star.
Signing Bregman would block Jung from third base for the foreseeable future. However, missing out would give Detroit little choice but to give their intriguing young stud a real chance to make a statement and establish himself as an important piece of the future.
