Injury to Detroit Tigers Starting Catcher Could Result in New Star Emerging

Will a new catcher emerge as a star for the Detroit Tigers?

Detroit Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler (13) bats against New York Yankees during the ninth inning at Comerica Park in Detroit on Wednesday, April 9, 2025. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Detroit Tigers are off to a good start in 2025 with the lineup performing quite well. 

Coming into the year, there was certainly still some concern about the offense of the Tigers. 

Last season, despite making the playoffs, Detroit’s lineup was lackluster at times. This winter, the team made a couple of notable signings, but most were to improve the pitching staff rather than the lineup. 

In the batting order, the only notable name that was signed was Gleyber Torres. The franchise was right in the mix to sign Alex Bregman, who would have been a perfect fit, but ultimately missed out on the All-Star third baseman. 

Fortunately, this spring saw former first overall pick Spencer Torkelson finally figure some things out. Now, the first baseman who was once considered to be a bust is in the middle of the order being a key contributor. 

Overall, the team ranks eighth in the Majors in runs scored, which is a nice improvement compared to last campaign. 

Now, a recent injury to their starting catcher, Jake Rogers, has resulted in their talented backup starting to get more playing time. However, this could end up being even more beneficial to the offense. 

Jason Beck of MLB.com recently spoke about catcher Dillon Dingler potentially making the most of the opportunity with more playing time due to an injury. 

“With Rogers sidelined, Dingler now figures to get the bulk of playing time, giving him regular at-bats to build on an encouraging start at the plate.”

Through eight games, the results at the plate have been impressive for Dingler. He has slashed .346/.370/.692 with two home runs and seven RBI. Rogers was a fine player for Detroit last season, but hitting wasn’t his forte. In 2024, he slashed 197/.255/.352 with 10 home runs and 36 RBI.

For Dingler, he’s got some serious upside on offense behind the plate. In the minors in 2024, he slashed .308/.379/.559 with 17 home runs and 52 RBI. Those are some impressive numbers at the plate, and the young slugger could be a significant contributor to the offense.

The 26-year-old catcher has been very good and is getting a decent amount of playing time to begin the year even before the injury to Rogers. 

If the young slugger continues to perform like he has at the plate, he very well could end up being the starter in the near future. 

While the team might be off to a strong start offensively in terms of runs scored, they have dealt with a lot of injuries to the lineup early on. However, it’s encouraging to see the depth of the organization help make up for starters being out.