MLB Insider Hints at AJ Hinch Extension Despite Tigers’ Epic Collapse
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It all almost slipped away from the Detroit Tigers. A 15.5-game lead in the American League Central evaporated. Completely. Once owners of the best record in baseball, the Tigers limped to the finish line. They'd ultimately fall a game behind the Cleveland Guardians for first place in the division.
Yes, they would finally claim the third and final wild card spot and set up their rotation for the playoffs. Barely. Detroit finished with the same record as the also-floundering Houston Astros, but mercifully owned the tie-breaker to make it into the October dance.
The man at the helm for all of this is a former Astro himself, AJ Hinch. One might think that Hinch's spot at the manager's desk is tenuous, and a quick playoff exit could be his undoing, but according to one MLB insider, one would be wrong.
USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported on Sunday that the Tigers are prepared to offer Hinch an extension, writing, "The Tigers plan to give manager A.J. Hinch a contract extension. The deal was close to being finalized a few weeks ago, but with the Tigers’ collapse, the timing simply wasn’t right."
MLB Insider Bob Nightengale Reports That the Tigers Are Close to Finalizing Contract Extension With AJ Hinch
If the timing seems off, that's because on the surface it is. After all, who better to scapegoat for the freefall than the captain of the ship? But a deeper look shows that if not for Hinch, things might have been worse. Much worse.
Following his suspension for his role in the Astros' sign-stealing scandal, Hinch took the helm in Detroit at a time when the franchise was in the midst of a downturn. Rebuilding and in the middle of a front office regime change with Al Avila out and Scott Harris in ahead of the 2023 season, Hinch oversaw the rebuild. Then in 2024, he turned a young team into a surprise playoff contender with an 86-76 record.
On that strength, plus the incredibly hot start the Tigers got off to at the start of the 2025 campaign, expectations had shifted. To finish 87-75, just a one-game improvement, seems like a disappointment even outside of the context of their late-season freefall.
But how much blame does Hinch really own? As the season progressed, it was evident that there were holes in the roster. Third base was a sore spot all season after Harris failed to go the extra mile to land Alex Bregman. The bullpen was another point of contention all season, and aside from positive contributions from Kyle Finnegan, Harris's attempts at the trade deadline to fix it fell flat.
Injuries in the starting rotation that left Tarik Skubal as the only reliable arm for large swaths of the season were also out of Hinch's control.
Instead, for the duration of the season, Hinch served as Detroit's voice of reason. His sage wisdom from many hard-fought playoff chases in Houston served as a reliable guiding light for the inexperienced club in the midst of a storm of adversity.
Looking at it that way, it makes sense that the Tigers would want to keep their skipper around for the long haul. With that said, until the ink is dry on the contract, anything can happen. An embarrassing postseason showing could leave the organization to change its mind.
Or, as Nightengale speculates in his column, a siren could come calling. Joe Esapada's seat in Houston is expected to be scorching following that franchise's first baseball-less October since 2016. In Nightengale's opinion, the Astros could touch base with Hinch for a possible reunion, though the details of how that could play out are fuzzy at this moment in time.
At the end of the day, it appears that Detroit believes Hinch is the right man to lead the charge now and in the future, at least for now.
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Based in the New York City area, Stephen has been a passionate sports fan since childhood, with baseball having always had a special place in his heart. Stephen took the plunge into freelance sports writing back in 2024, covering the New York Jets and the Brooklyn Nets for empiresportsmedia.com. Since then, Stephen served as Co-Site Expert for FanSided’s Los Angeles Angels site Halo Hangout and hosted the Bleav in Angels Podcast. He then moved on to cover a wide array of teams across FanSided’s MLB division. Stephen also covers the New York Jets for The Jet Press and the San Francisco 49ers for Niner Noise and now provides his baseball knowledge and expertise to MLB On SI. When Stephen is not writing, he enjoys spending time with his young daughter, attending concerts, cooking, and wondering if the New York Jets will ever win a Super Bowl in his lifetime.