Tigers Among Teams Interested in Converting Free Agent Reliever to Starter
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The Detroit Tigers enter the offseason with the goal of improving their pitching, and to this point they have not hid the fact that this will be their main focus both in the bullpen and starting rotation.
Exactly which direction president of baseball operations Scott Harris goes is anyone's guess, but it's inevitable that moves will be made to address both. Harris has always been willing to get creative, and the latest report surrounding Detroit is just the most recent example.
According to an article from multiple insiders in The Athletic including Cody Stavenhagen, Ken Rosenthal and Katie Woo (subscription required), the Tigers are among a group of teams who have shown interested in veteran reliever Ryan Helsley, but that they have talked to him about converting to the starting rotation.
Tigers Discussing Starter Role with Veteran Ryan Helsley
Helsley struggled to one of the worst seasons of his career in 2025, especially after a trade deadline deal sent him from the St. Lous Cardinals to the New York Mets. After being acquired by the Mets, the right-hander struggled to a 7.20 ERA in 22 appearances with a 1.80 WHIP, strikeout numbers that ticked down and walk numbers whic exploded.
In 20 innings for New York, he allowed 11 walks. While Helsley wasn't horrible for St. Louis prior to the deal, he also was not anywhere near the superstar version of himself from the 2024 season.
That year, the 31-year-old was the best closer in baseball with a big league leading 49 saves, a 2.04 ERA and a bWAR of 2.9 over his 65 appearances. Over 26 appearances for the Cardinals in 2025, he had a 3.00 ERA, but the command issues were noticeable as he began to unraven before falling apart completely after the trade.
Clearly though, Detroit feels his stuff would play better at this point of his career as a starter rather than reliever.
Could Tigers Fix Helsley's Issues After Conversion?
Helsley as a possible starter feels like an odd fit given that he has never started a big league game and relies most heavily on his fastball and slider. He also does not even really have any experience as a long reliever, with virtually all of his recent appearances coming over just one inning.
With numbers that have moved in the wrong direction and really nothing that to the naked eye indicates he would be a strong candidate to make the move from the bullpen, it's an interesting headline to hear that Helsley is garnering interest.
It remains to be seen if Detroit is the team that pulls it off, but if anyone has a chance of making it work it's Tigers pitching coach Chris Fetter. When Helsley makes his decision, surely Fetter's presence will serve to be a draw to the Motor City.
Time will tell if it's enough to actually lure him to come, but clearly the interest from the Detroit's end is real and will be a narrative until Helsley does eventually sign somewhere.
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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.