The Tigers have released veteran righty Mike Pelfrey, per a club announcement. Detroit will remain obligated for the $8MM owed to him for the coming season.
Pelfrey, 33, has struggled since inking a two-year pact with the team last winter. In 2016, he worked to an unsightly 5.07 ERA with just 4.2 K/9 against 3.5 BB/9 over 119 frames. And he was torched for 15 earned runs on 24 hits in his 17 innings this spring.
The Tigers were said to be looking for a taker for the righty, even offering to pick up some or all of his remaining salary, but it seems no other organization was interested in adding Pelfrey to its 40-man roster. Still, he seems an easy bet to land a minor-league deal from a club looking to bolster its depth.
jligenza708
Finally
biasisrelitive
great move. idk why they signed him in the first place. lol
dtrainriotmaker
Was gonna say the same thing . Maybe someone with upside will be on waivers or released
higuys
He was a top prospect in his earlier years because of his height and sinker. Somehow that means more than a long track record of being a terrible starter
babyk79
Was that picture taken on Jackie Robinson day?? Or is it just an old picture of Pelfrey lol
TheMichigan
Uh… Rivera was the last guy grandfather claused into the Jackie Robinson full number retirement.
Rbase
I heard the Padres are still looking for an ace…
vtadave
Jhoulys Chacin isn’t an ace? 🙂
markb
Hahaha, thats funny.
A'sfaninUK
Dumbest signing by a supposed contender in a while. You don’t sign Pelfrey to any contending rotation to a multi-year deal, ever.
ExileInLA 2
Any rotation with Pelfrey, by definition, is not a contending rotation.
jd396
I think the only statistic the Tigers looked at when signing Pelfrey was 30 starts in 2015.
stymeedone
I think they were also looking at the uptick on his fastball to 94 mph. You would think that someone with that type of arm would be able to miss some bats. It just didn’t happen. Even with the show of durability and the increase in velocity, I was stunned when they signed him to 2/16MM. It seemed like 2/8 or 2/10 would have been appropriate for his credentials. I would love to know if some other team was offering 2/15MM.
jd396
He always has sat around 93-94, and never has had any track record of missing bats, even in his “good” years with the Mets.
julian.san
hopefully things go well in the future for him
Brixton
Now someone can sign him and only pay him 1/16th of a Pelf
matteoscher
Maybe the Mets will pick him up 😉
frankthetank1985
I always pulled for big pelf as a Mets fan. He had all the tools accept they were never plugged in.
realgone2
HAHAAH
ExileInLA 2
But they were well lubricated…
Tigersin2020
Al Avila has made 2 pitching additions since taking over the ropes. The Detroit Tigers are paying those 2 additions 13.5 million dollars to not be on the team. Not to mention he chose Upton over Cespedes, and traded Maybin.
Thank you Dave Dombrowski for Fulmer, Boyd, and Norris. It’s still your team.
BrodiesHairisGreezy!
Pelfrey? The original Michael Pineda.
terrymesmer
> Thank you Dave Dombrowski for Fulmer, Boyd, and Norris. It’s still your team.
But…could Kyle Kendrick AND Mike Pelfry be in the Red Sox rotation in April?
stymeedone
no
Tigersin2020
I think Steven Moya has a better shot at making the Red Sox rotation than Pelfrey
jd396
I’ve always wondered what would happen trying to turn him into a reliever. Besides him whining and asking for a trade as happened a couple springs ago with the Twins.
He seems like the kind of guy who could just let it rip for an inning and have some success.
GarryHarris
Fake News: I read that yesterday, Steven Moya was cut then I saw highlights on the Detroit Metro TV news of him hitting a home run today..
stymeedone
After his injury, his velocity dropped.
stymeedone
When the Tigers tried him in the pen, they still found him hit-able. The average hitter against Mike Pelfrey puts up Miggy like numbers. That’s not good.