New Detroit Tigers Reliever Makes Shocking Revelation About Former Team
If one team's trash is another team's treasure, then that explains how the Detroit Tigers ended up with Tommy Kahnle this winter.
Kahnle became available after the New York Yankees let him walk in free agency. They apparently did not value his contributions to their pennant-winning team last year, including his 2.11 ERA in the regular season and a 2.08 ERA in the playoffs.
When the 35-year-old right-hander reached free agency after the Yankees' World Series loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers, many expected him to return to New York. Instead, his former team coldly moved on without even attempting to re-sign him.
On Wednesday's episode of Foul Territory, Kahnle revealed that the Yankees informed him early in the offseason that they weren't interested in bringing him back after six seasons in the Big Apple.
"I feel like they didn't even try to be honest"
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) February 19, 2025
Tommy Kahnle says the Yankees made no effort to re-sign him as a free agent pic.twitter.com/IzcIp8B8Xb
"Before anything really started to pick up, they were kind of like, 'We don't think we can meet your numbers,'" Kahnle said. "I feel like they didn't even try, to be honest."
The Tigers wound up signing Kahnle to a one-year, $7.75 million deal in January — a contract New York easily could have afforded as one of the richest teams in baseball.
Not only did the Yankees lose one of their top bullpen arms to a rising AL contender, but they lost him to a team with far less financial resources.
Worse, it sounds like New York didn't even bother to seriously negotiate with Kahnle, even though he'd just helped the team reach the World Series.
Perhaps the Yankees overestimated the veteran's market or had concerns about his age. Whatever the reason, they let a perfectly good reliever leave for a competitor.
Detroit is fortunate that they did, as Kahnle's one of the league's better relievers. Over the last three years, he's tallied a 2.44 ERA, a 1.06 WHIP and a 10.1 K/9 in 96 innings.
Most teams would want to keep a guy like that around, but not New York.
