Breaking down the Detroit Tigers’ offseason pickups

Comerica+Park%2F+Photo+Credit%3B+Luke+Sloan%2F+WDBM%0A%0A

Comerica Park/ Photo Credit; Luke Sloan/ WDBM

Michael Germaine, General Assignment Reporter

The Detroit Tigers have signed many players this offseason, but will it get them to the wild car race? In the 2021 season, the Tigers finished with a 77-85 record with a winning percentage of .475. Even though the season started slow, the team started figuring out how to win games. 

The problem for Detroit was its offensive strategies while attacking hitters. The bullpen lacked depth and strong arms to help close out tight games. The Tigers needed to add depth to their pitching staff this offseason, which is exactly what they are doing.

It all started after the 2017 MLB season in which the Tigers posted a 64-98 record with 34 of the wins coming at home. With the White Sox, Royals, Twins and Indians (now Guardians) ahead of them, it was time to draft a starting pitcher. 

In the following Draft, the Tigers selected Casey Mize with the first overall pick. 

In his junior season at Auburn, Mize had a 10-6 record with a 3.30 ERA in 17 starts. In addition, he became just the second two-time All-American in program history while also becoming the first Auburn pitcher to earn First Team All-SEC honors since 2000. 

In the 2021 season, Mize had a7-9 record with a .438 win-loss percentage. He started in 30 of those games, giving up 150 hits. Out of those hits, he gave up only 64 runs. He allowed only 24 home runs while walking only 41 batters. 

Detroit picked up a lot of pitchers in free agency who will be joining the young Mize. 

Starting left-handed pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez signed a five-year, $77 million deal. With a slow start in his career with the Boston Red Sox, he started performing better during the 2018 and 2019 seasons. 

During the 2018 season, Rodriguez had a 13-5 record with a .722 win-loss percentage. While starting 23 games, he managed to pitch 129 innings the whole year. He allowed 119 hits and a total of 56 runs scored. Rodriguez walked 45 batters while only giving up 16 home runs. 

Following the 2018 season, Rodriguez improved his numbers even more in 2019. He had a record of 19-6 had a .760 winning percentage. He started 34 of those games and gave up195 hits. Rodriguez had a career low ERA with 3.81 while walking a career-high 75 batters. 

In addition to Rodriguez, the Tigers also signed right-handed pitcher Julio Teheran, right-handed pitcher Jose Urena, right-handed pitcher Wily Peralta and left-handed pitcher Derek Holland. 

The addition of Derek Holland is a must-have for any organization. After losing Matt Boyd in the offseason, the Tigers were able to replace a starting left-handed pitcher. 

Holland was a terrific pitcher for the Texas Rangers, particularly in the 2011 and 2012 seasons. In 2011, he had a 16-5 record with a 3.95 ERA. He started 32 of those appearances and gave up a total of 201 hits. 

With the MLB on lockdown, organizations are looking to rebuild this offseason. Time will only tell when the Tigers will be back to making moves.