Detroit Tigers Could Make Ultra-Aggressive Move By Signing Cy Young Winner
Entering Sunday, the Detroit Tigers are right on the heels of the final American League Wild Card spot, trailing the Minnesota Twins by just 2.5 games.
But with a loss on Saturday, things all of a sudden have gotten a bit murkier for the upstart Tigers.
The Seattle Mariners now have the same record as Detroit, and the Boston Red Sox are lurking behind, trailing both by just one contest despite going 5-5 over their last 10.
This will be an exciting finish to the season for the Tigers and their fanbase, no matter what happens. It truly was unexpected considering where they were for the majority of the year and their decision to become sellers ahead of the deadline.
What can be pointed to is the youth movement that was fully embraced.
With multiple rookies in their lineup and rotation, they are playing their best baseball of the season to get themselves to this point, something that bodes well for the future and signals this prolonged rebuild might finally have an end in sight.
This free agency period is something that is going to be very interesting for Detroit.
There are some rumblings the ownership group might be willing to spend some money on players who can come in and immediately boost this roster so they can start competing in the AL Central as soon as 2025.
If that is the direction they want to take, then they should be interested in making a splash by signing two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell.
What manager A.J. Hinch has done with the pitching staff to this point by only having three starters and going with bullpen games for the others, has truly been admirable. An argument could be made without that foresight, they wouldn't be in this position.
But it's not sustainable.
To be contenders, they need a real rotation with elite arms to pair alongside their upcoming AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal.
Snell fits that bill, not only as a veteran who would bring some experience to the clubhouse, but also someone in his prime who fits the window for the Tigers with their young players emerging all at the same time.
The lineup seems as healthy as ever with all these rookies and star prospects, so going out and signing a few veterans to be depth pieces would allow them to allocate the majority of their resources to landing perhaps the best pitcher who is scheduled to hit the market.
Having him in the top of the rotation behind Skubal, while also putting emerging star Keider Montero, Reese Olson, Casey Mize, and potentially superstar prospect Jackson Jobe behind those two would be incredible.
Beyond that, it would be competitve.
That's what Detroit needs if they're serious about competing next season, and landing the two-time Cy Young winner would certainly do that.
BRAD WAKAI