Projecting Detroit Tigers Starting Rotation to Begin Next Season
The Detroit Tigers head into next season looking to take the next step from fun underdog story with an unlikely playoff run to true World Series contender.
In order to do that, the pitching staff will have to experience success outside of just Tarik Skubal and other starters will have to step up. While the chaotic bullpen games proved successful last season, in an ideal world the Tigers would have five true reliable starters in a traditional rotation who A.J. Hinch can feel confident about any of them.
With a ton of depth but not a lot of top tier surefire talent among the organization's potential starters, who steps up to seize the final spots will be among the most prominent storylines in spring training. Without further ado, here is a projected five-man rotation at the start of the 2025 season for Detroit factoring in any future acquisitions via trade or free agency.
Opening Day Starter: LHP Tarik Skubal
No surprises here. Skubal is coming off a historic Triple Crown unanimous Cy Young winning season and has established himself as perhaps the most dominant pitcher on the planet. The big lefty struck out a ridiculous 228 batters in 192 innings pitched while sporting a 2.39 ERA and a WHIP of 0.922 along with a record of 18-4. Simply put, when Skubal is on the mound and at his best, the Tigers are borderline impossible to beat. You can pencil him in here for as long as he's in Detroit.
No. 2: RHP Reese Olson
Entering the offseason, Olson felt like the only guarantee to be in the rotation alongside Skubal in 2025. While he did suffer through some injuries this past season, Olson was very good when he was on the mound. In 22 starts, he had a 3.53 ERA in 112.1 innings pitched in just his second year in the league, better numbers than Skubal had in his second season. The 25-year-old Olson has shown some promise, and if he can put it all together he could be a future star.
No. 3: RHP Alex Cobb
The team didn't hand Cobb a minimum of $15 million on a one-year deal for him to be featured in the bullpen. They obviously liked Cobb a lot and believe they can get the most out of the veteran in his 14th MLB season. Battling back from another injury in his long history to contribute three starts to the Cleveland Guardians down the stretch, Cobb was very solid with a 2-1 record and a 2.76 ERA in those starts. If history repeats itself as it often does, Cobb will be injured at some point and the depth will be tested. But if the Tigers can get between 20 and 25 quality starts out of the righty, they'll be happy.
No. 4: RHP Jackson Jobe
Jobe is the X-Factor of the rotation, and really of the entire team. The top prospect in the organization came up at the end of the year and struggled mightily in the playoffs, but if he can move past that and be the pitcher he is expected to be in 2025, Detroit is going to have another superstar right alongside Skubal. If Jobe is as advertised, the Tigers have a chance to have one of the best rotations in all of baseball with the most dominant duo Detroit has seen since Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer were terrorizing the American League.
No. 5: RHP Keider Montero
This is the Wild Card spot of the rotation. Montero likely has an edge over guys like Casey Mize and Kenta Maeda, but it's close. Mize and Montero put up similar numbers last season, so it will not be a surprise to see it come down to a battle between those two. However, this is an extremely righty heavy rotation outside of Skubal, so it wouldn't be a shock to see Hinch opt for a more open bullpen game type situation for the fifth slot in the rotation. If he does want five true starters however, Montero, Mize, and Maeda are the three names to watch.
Michael Brauner is a 2022 graduate of the University of Alabama with a degree in Sports Media. He covers various MLB teams across the On SI network and you can also find his work on Yellowhammer News covering the Alabama Crimson Tide and Auburn Tigers as well as on the radio producing and co-hosting 'The Opening Kickoff' every weekday morning on 105.5 WNSP FM in Mobile, Alabama.