Detroit Tigers' Front Office Must Decide if Franchise's Future is Now
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The Detroit Tigers' front office has a conundrum on their hands that will ultimately shape the fate of the team.
The Tigers are coming off an unexpected late-season surge that sent them to the playoffs in 2024, which ended a 10-year postseason drought for Detroit.
Tarik Skubal is the reigning American League Cy Young award winner, cementing himself as one of the game's best pitchers. The team brought back veteran Jack Flaherty this offseason, giving the Tigers two reliable veterans on top of their rotation. Both pitchers will be under team control through the 2026 season.
Then there is American League Rookie of the Year contender Jackson Jobe, who has the premium stuff to contend for Cy Young awards in the future.
Detroit had a below average offense in 2024, but their lineup is filled with young players and a few hitters that could exceed expectations this year.
The Tigers have enough pieces in place to be a factor in the American League over the next two seasons, as constructed right now.
Detroit also has five top-100 prospects, all hitters, that will partake in their Spring Breakout matchup on March 16.
That gives their front office a very important decision to make over the coming months: Is the future right now for Tigers baseball?
The organization could decide to stick with their homegrown talent to build around centerpiece Riley Greene. In that scenario, Detroit continues to develop premium prospects like outfielder Max Clark and middle infielder Kevin McGonigle. If those blue chip talents reach their potential, the Tigers could end up with an ascending young offense to compliment their high-end pitching staff.
That could make them a factor in the American League for the next half decade or more, but that outcome is reliant on unproven players reaching their ceiling. There is absolutely no guarantee of that happening.
The other path is they package some of those top-100 prospects and trade them for a premium rental, like Vladimir Guerrero Jr.. If the Toronto Blue Jays fall out of contention before the trade deadline, they could move Guerrero Jr. in-season.
He is the middle of the order power bat Detroit needs, but it would be a surprise if they were able to extend him, considering how much Guerrero Jr. could command on the open market. Even in that scenario, it would then likely become a choice between extending Guerrero Jr. or Skubal.
Regardless, the Tigers have enough farm-system ammo to get MVP-caliber talent like Guerrero Jr., but should they part with it?
The New York Yankees brutal run of injuries could make this decision more complicated for Detroit, especially if Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole's elbow injury is severe. If New York is vulnerable and the Tigers are playoff bound come mid-summer, 2025 could be their best shot to get to the World Series with this core.
In that scenario, it could be in Detroit's best interest to push their farm-system chips in and declare that their future is right now.
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Ryan Reynolds has worked in sports media since 2019, where he’s primarily covered the NFL. He got his start writing for Evan Silva and Adam Levitan’s Establish the Run where Ryan became an authority on NFL awards markets. Ryan recently served as an Associate Director and content headliner for former NFL executives Joe Banner and Mike Tannenbaum at The 33rd Team. Ryan has also made multiple guest appearances on Fantasy Sports Radio on SiriusXM and VSiN. Outside of sports Ryan has a bachelor’s degree in accounting, graduating with honors from the University of Minnesota. He now has nearly a decade’s worth of experience in management. You can find Ryan on X @RyanReynoldsNFL or email him at RyanReynoldsNFL@gmail.com.