Tigers righty Kenta Maeda will not make his next scheduled start and will instead move to the bullpen “for the foreseeable future,” manager A.J. Hinch announced to the team’s beat this morning (X link via Evan Woodbery of MLive.com). Maeda is not currently expected to return to the rotation after the All-Star break. The Tigers will make a decision on what to do with that open rotation spot at a later date.
Maeda, 36, has struggled greatly in the first season of a two-year, $24MM deal signed over the winter. It appeared to be a highly reasonable signing at the time, as Maeda had shined over the final four months of the season with the division-rival Twins after returning from a triceps injury. In Maeda’a final 16 starts of the 2023 campaign, he pitched to a 3.36 ERA with an excellent 29% strikeout rate and strong 7% walk rate.
Things have gone the opposite direction in 2024. The longtime Dodgers and Twins righty has started 16 games but tallied just 65 2/3 innings with a grim 7.26 earned run average. His command remains solid (7.9% walk rate), but Maeda’s strikeout rate has plummeted to 17.1% and he’s lost close to a mile per hour off his fastball (averaging just 90.3 mph this season, per Statcast). Most problematically, Maeda has already yielded 15 homers on the year, just two shy of his 2023 total (in 104 1/3 innings) and one shy of his 2022 total (in 106 1/3 innings).
The Tigers’ other offseason rotation addition, righty Jack Flaherty, has enjoyed a brilliant rebound campaign. He and Cy Young candidate Tarik Skubal have formed a dynamic one-two punch atop the Detroit starting staff, and sophomore righty Reese Olson has stepped up to give Hinch three quality options with ERA of 3.30 or less. Former No. 1 pick Casey Mize returned from Tommy John surgery and back surgery to post a solid, if unspectacular 4.23 mark in 16 starts of his own.
That quartet gives the Tigers a quality slate of options in the top four spots, and righty Keider Montero has rattled off consecutive quality starts over the past week-plus. He might be the first up for a look in the fifth spot, but Detroit will likely need another starting option before long. Excellent as Flaherty has been, the Tigers as a whole have underwhelmed at 44-49. That leaves them 14 games out of the AL Central lead and seven back in the AL Wild Card hunt. A trade of Flaherty seems overwhelmingly likely between now and July 30, as the right-hander is playing on a one-year deal and is positioning himself for a potential nine-figure deal in free agency this winter.
The top internal option for the Tigers to take that spot, if and when it becomes necessary, is former first-round pick and top prospect Matt Manning. The 26-year-old has yet to establish himself as a consistent MLB rotation presence, working to a 4.43 ERA over 50 big league starts. That includes a 4.88 mark in five starts (27 2/3 innings) earlier this season. He’s yielded an unsightly 5.03 ERA in Triple-A this year but has far more promising strikeout and walk rates of 24.7% and 8.8%, respectively.
Speculatively speaking, Detroit could move forward with a rotation of Skubal, Olson, Mize, Manning and Montero while hoping that former top-40 pick Ty Madden (8.43 ERA in 12 Triple-A starts) turns things around in Toledo. It’s also feasible that their deadline dealings bring in some other rotation candidates of note. Of course, an ideal scenario would see a sojourn to the bullpen help Maeda rediscover his form, paving the way for him to rejoin the starting staff and create some optimism for better performance in 2025. There’s a long way to go before that’s a consideration right now, however.
Looks like the Twins letting him go was the wise move. Letting Sonny Gray walk on the other hand…..
Sonny Gray would not have resigned with the Twins anyway. didn’t like Rocco’s quick pitching changes in his first year with the team.
“Would not have resigned”…I never heard anyone from Gray’s camp complain about “quick pitching changes”, unless you have some sort of insider information. We all know that free agents sign with whomever makes the largest guarantee 99% of the time. I think it’s safe to assume that Minnesota was unwilling to offer Sonny Gray more than the Cardinals did.
Gray himself was constantly talking about wanting to pitch deeper into games when he was in Minnesota. I get the feeling he was ready to move on. Doesn’t excuse the front office for not bringing in a viable replacement,though.
he was saying goodbye to his teammates after they were eliminated in the playoffs last year. he wasn’t coming back.
I do. Walker Jenkins was drafted by the Twins, not the Tigers.
I thought it was “your Orioles”?
LOL. Solid troll, Fletch.
As a Tiger fan….Twins were smart to let him go.
Looks absolutely cooked.
Who would have thought Flaherty would end up being the better signing. Tigers need Maeda to figure things out quickly if they hope to trade him at the deadline. With his season long struggles and $10 million dollar salary for next season that is looking very unlikely
No one is taking him. I haven’t even seen him mention in rumors.
It’s sounds pretty crazy, but I could actually see the Cardinals being interested here. Detroit would have to pay the rest of his salary this year and probably include some kind of sweetener. The Cardinals would only be sending back a Moises Gomez type. I could see it.
SOLD!!!
Sounds too good to be true right? But unfortunately the Cardinals have put themselves in this situation. The opportunity to kick the tires the rest of this season for free with a $10 million dollar gamble on next season is a better deal than just giving $10 mil to someone off the street like we did with Lance Lynn this year. The Lynn deal has turned out ok.
When a player does well and is comfortable somewhere it makes seslnse to bring him back. Lynn seemed comfortable in St Louis. I’m hoping the Tigers trade Flaherty at the deadline then circle back to him in the offseason, because he is doing well and looks comfortable in Detroit.
Hats off to the Tigers and Jack Flaherty! I hope Jack does the smart thing this offseason and prioritizes putting himself in the best place to succeed. Detroit seems to become him.
I was happy with the Lynn signing and still am. It’s just the larger circumstances that necessitate taking flyers on aging starters that I’m unhappy about.
I don’t see how his value can rebound enough by the deadline. He’s a huge negative right now.
“huge negative right now”..Literally. As in almost -2 W.A.R
Nah, they’re stuck with that mistake.
Good move. Highest ERA of all MLB starters makes this an easy call. Joe Schmoe from AAA probably couldn’t do any worse.
WRONG! Joe Schmoe certainly could do worse. Manning and Madden being the most obvious Joes are not lighting up AAA and in fact are being lit up. Why do you think the Tigers waited so long to do this, just to irritate the fanbase? No it was because they don’t have an obvious replacement for Maeda that gives them confidence in a better result.
Madden and Hurter were not much worse than Montero at AAAvwho has done okay so far. Sawyer Gipson Long was having a so so year at AAA when he came up last year and had great results. Manning is struggling big time.
So the Tigers have no one in their system who can give up fewer than 7 earned runs per 9 IP??? Despite Manning, Madden, and Hurter having rough starts, I’ll bet they’d outpitch Maeda’s 7.26 ERA.
Many examples. Jobe, of course. After seeing what he did to the Twins in Spring Training, there’s no doubt in my mind he can get some wins.
Verlander skipped AAA and I’m wondering if Jobe is on the same path.
His demand to be a starter is why he was traded to the Twins back in 2020. He kept getting moved to the bp every season as he began to fade.
Yep Maeda’s refusal to go to the bullpen is why he was traded to the twins. I’m sure this won’t go over well, although can’t say I feel bad for cheating AJ Hinch.
Hinch is a good coach.
IMO hinch is still a good manager after the scandal
Even though he turned a blind eye to it wasn’t he forced to by luhnow or he loses his job
“A good coach”…You’d never know it from the Tiger’s on-field results. I never understood how some cheaters were seemingly banned for life and yet guys like Cora & Hinch were welcomed back to the game like prodigal sons. Why is that?
When half your lineup hits .200 and you are waiting on management to spend you use what you have. MLB made their decision not to ban them for life so you’d have to ask them. He’s the coach in Detroit and he’s done a good job with what he has to work with.
Hinch is called a manager. Thanks for playing.
Thanks Captain Obvious.
Keider Montero hasn’t done bad his last couple starts he is an option as is putting Alex Faedo back in the rotation. The whole reason behind putting Faedo in the pen was to ease him back from TJ surgery and that was his future position.. bringing Matt Manning up from Toledo is also an option but someone has to be optioned in order to do so. I’m really looking forward to next season when hopefully Jackson Jobe is ready. Pretty much the last good gift Al Avila gave us fans. (There weren’t many)
Manning has not been good in AAA. He needs to figure some things out. Montero has improved greatly since his first two starts. Brieske was mentioned about a month ago as a possibility for the rotation. Maybe Madden or Hurter will get a shot at some point, even though their AAA stats have been poor this year. Flaherty is likely gone at the deadline which may bring in some near MLB ready arms. If Jobe pitches well maybe he gets a September callup. Mize will be back at some point as well.
I’d like them to grab Joey Lucchesi and let Chris Fetter see what he can do with him. Shift Easton Lucas off the 40 man roster. It can’t hurt and he has had previous success.
Help me understand how Harris has done any better…who outside of Flaherty has he brought in? Maton? McKinsey? Miller? Maybe Vierling and Kelly but other than these 2 he’s utilizing all of Avilia’s picks and players like Skubal, Greene, Keith, Mize, Olson….
Of course the draft is this weekend so we can expect the Boy Wonder to draft another high schooler who will end up flaming out like every other Tiger high school draft pick has other than Porcello and Castellanos
Holton has been okay, as has urshela. He also brought back Chafin. Malloy, while hitting for a low average, has supplied some power along with taking walks. Who signed Ibanez, wasn’t it Harris?
Landini named most of his moves. I posted more below.
Don’t forget Riley Greene.
Greene, Colt Keith and Jobe were all drafted out of high school. Perez was signed as a 16 year old, so basically high school. They will have 4 out of 9 starting players drafted out of HS. Total flame outs?
Maeda’s first foot is out the door. Other foot coming soon if he gas cans in the bullpen. My guess is Faedo or Brieske to move to the rotation. For the time being, when Maedo’s spot comes up on Sunday vs. the Dodgers, the Tigers go with a bullpen game, obviously without an appearance by Kenta.
Thoughts on grabbing Joey Lucchesi and letting Fetter have a go at him? I’d like to see Madden or Hurter get a shot in the second half too, like they did with Montero.
Madden is struggling at Toledo. Hurter is too, However, Montero had a 5.00+ ERA when he got promoted. I’d rather give Maedo or Briekse a shot first as they’ve started before at the MLB level.
Maeda’s next start is Sunday, just before the AS break. My guess is they go with a BP day then as you state and then figure out how to proceed depending on how close Mize is to returning from the IL.
Kenta will be off the team soon, give him the Joey Wentz role and only use him if the game is out of reach. DFA him if he figures nothing out. Terrible signing.
He picked it up last year in the second half so hopefully he can contribute from the bullpen this year. That was a first half to forget for Maeda that’s for sure.
There’s a number of other players on the Tigers roster who should be under consideration for a DFA after the trade deadline. Baez is chief among them but also McKinistry and Wentz.
I was surprised he managed a 2-year deal, but that was based on his strong finish last year. Clearly the Twins got the best of what he had left. He can still turn it around which starts with his acceptance of the BP role and choosing to make it work for him and the team. He’s always been very resistant to pitching in relief.
In his recent comments about his poor pitching he seemed almost humbled. Let’s hope that’s the case. His other options are AAA or DFA if he doesnt like it.
As you well know, I’ve been advocating for DFA of Kenta for several weeks now. I can’t see him correcting what went wrong. He’s getting worse and worse and finally Hinch and Harris have seen the light after giving him every single chance. As I said above, his demotion to the bullpen is the first foot out the door with the Tigers. The second foot will follow soon, if he continues to be a gas can in Toledo.
Also, to those who want to trash Harris for signing him, he had a decent season in Minnesota in 2023 and the two year contract was warranted at the time. Hindsight is always 20/20 and nobody saw him falling off so hard and so quickly.
It is OK to trash Harris. Why not? What exactly has he done for the on-the-field product that any Joe Fan couldn’t have done? It’s 2 years now.
Dave Dombrowski spoiled the Tiger fans. He sees things a certain way, then makes it happen. Like, his HOF berth.
Canning him eventually led to spoiling Phillies fans. Harris will never be Dave Dombrowski Good….but he can’t be Al Avila Bad, or can he?
Same as everyone who trashed him for signing Flaherty. Take the good with the bad.
Hopefully they clean house after the trade deadline and cut bait on Baez, McKinistry and maybe even Wentz too.
Flaherty, Canha, Urshela, Ibanez, Clark, Lorenzen signings. Getting Malloy from Atlanta. Getting Vierling from Phil. Getting Leonard and Holton for nothing. Getting Lee at the deadline last year. Wicked draft last year. Locking Keith up. Punting out problem children. Getting a good GM. Letting the young guys play to see what they have and what they need for next year. Signing Hinch long term.
He screwed up on the Erod trade and that’s about it…and I blame Erod for some of that. I don’t blame him for not signing FAs to mega contracts because they needed to assess what they had and that narrow thinking is what led to Avila’s downfall.
Him and Greenberg are doing exactly what they said they would do. Building a team that can try to win consistently year after year.
sergefunction, It’s ridiculous to trash Harris after less than two years on the job in Detroit. Those who do, are just plain trolls and Harris haters. Think about this point in time in DD’s era with the Tigers and he’s put on a pedestal as a deity. Dombrowski was in the midst of a 119-loss season after a 106-loss season in 2002. Nobody ever mentions that, and he was a much more seasoned executive. When you compare him to Harris, Scott lost 83 games last season and at this time compared to last season, the Tigers have actually won two more games heading into today’s game. But according let’s fire Harris, because he’s a bad PBO. who hasn’t done anything. Using your logic, DD wouldn’t have made it into 2004.
It’s called homework, which people like you refuse to do.
I don’t think the comatose Tiger fans are going to awaken and rally around Harris with his Flaherty achievement..
That’s his legacy signing. HOF, hold his spot.
Canha, Urshela, McKinstry are all roster filler. nothing to praise Harris for. Lorenzen and Flaherty were solid signings. Kudos! Avila was 0 for in signing FA pitchers, his main downfall. But then Harris traded Lorenzen for a 2B, after he had Keith moved to 2B, and planned to lock him up. (Keith was an Avila draftee.) Not great foresight. Clark vs Langford is still a question.
He did screw up the ERod trade. He also cut Candelario for no return over a squabble of $1MM, and then cut Turnbull over a Squabble. Again, no return. Perhaps Maeda wouldn’t have been signed if they had still had Turnbull on the roster.
Malloy shows promise with the bat, but he shouldn’t have a glove. Its too early to give him, or Leonard any type of success score.
Harris hasn’t yet shown he can make the big trade, or sign the big FA.
Early signs are he can draft, but so could Avila and that alone did not save his job. I was hoping for better results to this point, but shouldn’t we expect the Tigers to be more aggressive this deadline and thru the off season?
How is it a “legacy signing” two years in?
I agree they need to be more aggressive at the deadline and in the off season. I’ll give you the Candelario thing as well…not Turnbull though, he was a distraction and problem child. Keith could end up changing positions by the time Lee gets here, or maybe Lee does. McGonigle is a SS now but many have him pegged as a future 2B too. That’s a good, Baltimore type problem to have…too many good players at a position.
You are right that Avila could draft and Harris/Greenberg need to be able to show more than just good drafts. I think so far their free agent signings and trades have been more good than bad, but mostly on the fringes like he did in SF (exelcept Flaherty which is just a wicked signing). They need to go get more impactful players in the offseason through trade of free agency. Time to fill the remaining holes.
Yet another gem of a comment by STYMEEDONE, the chronic Harris hater. Hate on you moron! You only show your ignorance whenever you post and lack of patience. The remedy? Stop friggen posting. You can’t see the forest for the trees regarding Harris, due to your myopic hatred of him. You continue to get worse and are a complete joke.
One more thing for you, idiot STYMEEDONE….your man crush Avila turned this team from contenders to a dumpster fire. Harris is in the process of cleaning up the mess he left begging and utilizing what ashes he left behind. The Tigers are better now than the most of the Avila era and headed in the right direction.
*behind not begging, darned autocorrect.
Madea goes to the ‘Pen
Good move! About 2 weeks overdue though
It was time, and even there facing the minimum 3 batters will be white knuckle affairs. Flahrety will no doubt be issued a Q.O. if he stays past the deadline, and he’s worth the 20 million it costs for one more season.
The Tigers need to train Kerry Carpenter to play first base, if he can they;ll be in great shape next season. Wencell Perez and Colt Kieth gives the Tigers two outstanding rookies this year. The power of Vierling gives the Tigers their best hitting third baseman in decades. Beating Cleveland like a drum is showing what they did last year was no fluke.
The Tiger’s have some great guys right now, and the future looks bright.
I’m hoping the trade Flaherty for prospects ant then circle back and sign him in the offseason. He’s pitched well and looks comfortable there.
Jung will be up at some point too. He either plays 3B making Vierling the utility guy or 2B which might mean Keith goes to 1B which has been mentioned as a possibility for the future. Carp has actually played a decent OF. I think who plays 1B depends a lot on how Tork addresses his issues.
That qualifying offer is just too big to pass up I think. It’s a nice raise for Flahrity and should give a nice spot for Jobe to get into the rotation instead of Meada. I’m worried that if Meadow’s is really finally going to hit enough, and Perez has no hiccup in the second year, that if Carpenter can learn first besides o.f. and d.h. it’ll be a big help to the team.
Tork is not being missed right now, but if a spot opens at first because of the trade deadline then what the hey. The Tigers are playing real good this home stand.
Agree, Nobody wins all their moves. Maeda hasn’t worked out. But Flaherty certainly has. Lorenzen last year. The Freep podcast rips on Harris’ moves a lot but never seem to give him credit for the good moves. I see Vierling & Ibanez as successful acquisitions and as keepers moving forward.
Canha, Geo & Kelly have given the Tigers exactly what was expected, so I don’t look at those as bad moves. Anyone expecting more out of them or contention by the Tigers this year needs to look in the mirror, not at Harris. This team isn’t and wasn’t ready to contend. I think the Tigers are doing the right thing this year: giving the farmhands long, hard looks at the MLB level to see who’s worth keeping and who’s not.
(was responding to tigerfan4ever re: trashing harris)
You are spot on. I wish others would think like us. But they’re just Harris haters and trolls.
See STYMEEDONE as an example as a Harris hater and troll.
I agree with everything you said.
Beau Briske will be moved to the rotation.
FWIW, as a Dodger fan, we had similar issues with him as a starter. He was moved to the bullpen and actually performed quite well. He was used in the playoff runs as a high leverage reliever and was quite successful. I remember his slider being a potent weapon against righties. Then again, that was 6 years and pre-surgery.
For Dodgers he was different P outta pen. Real aggressive n had alota Ks for having avg-ish stuff but he wanted to start. Dodgers would slide em over to pen towards end of season getting ready for playoffs n he put out fires.
Jackson Jobe
Jobe is just coming off of injury and rejoining Toledo. It’s not likely he’ll see Detroit until September at the earliest….more probable 2025.
Correction, Erie not Toledo. He had his first start back from the IL tonight.
Twinkies played that non-contract right !!
His history is far less impressive than his contract warranted
I feel like Maeda is either:
Hurt and hiding it
Doesn’t care enough to properly prepare for the season or games
Behind a language barrier
Let’s face it. Chris Fetter is the master of career rejuvenation. If he can’t fix him and make him at least serviceable, there’s got to be a reason why.
TroyVan, Maeda has a reputation of not preparing for seasons. He doesn’t have a workout regimen. He uses spring training and April to get up to speed after the offseason. When he got off to a slow start, I figured it was his normal routine, but now we’re approaching the All Star Break and trade deadline and he’s not only not adjusted to in season action, he’s actually getting worse as the season goes on. Although, I believe he should be used in low leverage situations, Hinch said today in his post game press conference, he’ll be used like any other reliever. I have a gut feeling that A.J. is being politically correct and will use Kenta like he uses Wentz, in mop up duty, at least I hope that’s the case.
Off topic….Vilade up and starting in left, Baddoo down.
Sooo disappointed with Baddoo’s hitting. I really thought he was going to be a Randy Arozarena clone.
Come on, Adams. “Excellent as Flaherty has been” is NOT PROPER ENGLISH. You can’t just leave “as” out to begin the sentence. Grammar isn’t optional.