Detroit Tigers Created One Major Issue During Trade Deadline
When the Detroit Tigers traded Jack Flaherty to the Los Angeles Dodgers, not only did that hurt the ball club's chances of competing for the remainder of the year, but it also caused an even bigger issue for their pitching staff in terms of depth.
The Tigers are already running bullpen days frequently, so this brings an even bigger challenge for A.J. Hinch. There are options in the organization, and while they've flirted with Kenta Maeda as a bullpen arm, he could move back to the starting rotation full-time.
Moving Flaherty did allow them to give opportunities to some of the organization's young arms, but it's uncertain just who they'll give that chance to.
Jackson Jobe looks to arguably be the best pitcher in minor league baseball, but he's not expected to make his major league debut this season. Scott Harris told Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic that he's going to pitch in Triple-A before coming to Detroit, but maybe that plan will eventually change.
Given the situation, it's something they'll have to figure out, and soon. MLB.com looked at one question for each team after the deadline, and Jason Beck asked who'll pitch for them moving forward.
"The Tigers were already running out bullpen starts two out of every five days before trading Jack Flaherty. Now, their rotation is down to AL Cy Young favorite Tarik Skubal and rookie Keider Montero...
"President of baseball operations Scott Harris said they’ll fill the openings internally, which could mean opportunities for No. 14 prospect Brant Hurter and/or No. 23 prospect Lael Lockhart. Casey Mize won’t return until the end of August after the Tigers moved him to the 60-day injured list. Matt Manning should have a chance to return down the stretch once he returns from his lat injury at Triple-A Toledo."
The most important part of all of this is that they need to keep their starting pitching healthy moving forward. If they have to give more innings to certain guys just to fill that void, it could become an issue.
Not just right now, but for next season.
There's no reason why this should become an issue and risk an injury, as there are options internally.
However, it'll be something that the front office has to figure out. That means a move or two could be coming to call up a prospect, or they could even go out and possibly add an arm off waivers, depending on what they want to do.
JON CONAHAN