Tigers Could Be Forced to Shake Up Back of Rotation Amid Spring Struggles
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The Detroit Tigers entered spring training with the hope that they could have one of the better starting rotations in all of baseball, and there have been some signs in camp to point to that.
With some pitching performances, especially from the names at the top of the staff like Tarik Skubal and Framber Valdez have been sensational, there has been some serious concern as well in the back half of the rotation, which has some ready to press the panic button.
Following a dreadful performance over the weekend, Casey Mize has a 7.15 ERA on the spring over 11.1 innings, while Jack Flaherty has not looked a whole look better en route to posting a 7.88 ERA of his own across eight innings.
Spring stats should always be taken with a significant grain of salt, however Detroit cannot afford to have dud performances from starting pitchers. Given how spectacular one signing has looked, could A.J. Hinch consider changing things up?
Drew Anderson Could Force His Way into Tigers Rotation
While the KBO standout signing from December became a little bit of an afterthought after Detroit went out and acquired both Valdez and Justin Verlander in February, he has quietly had an absolutely sensational spring.
The right-hander has posted a 0.73 ERA over 12.1 innings pitched, showing much better velocity than his last stint in the big leagues as well as elite command with 17 strikeouts compared to just four walks.
Anderson has a lot to prove if he's going to earn his way into the rotation, but he is already at the very least a valuable swingman and very much could be the first name up when someone inevitably gets injured.
If someone like Mize decides to not get it together early in the year though, perhaps Anderson could get his shot even earlier than that.
Anderson Looks Like One of Tigers Five Best Arms
Detroit is ready to win and ready to win now, so it will be interesting to see what kind of leash they give someone like Mize if he does indeed continue to struggle his way through the start of the regular season.
Ultimately, Flaherty will be given much more grace based on the money he's making.
Clearly, Anderson is going to start games for this team this season, but whether or not that comes purely out of need versus the fact that he is one of the best options remains to be seen. The Tigers committed to Anderson financially, and their doing that should have been the first sign of their belief in him.
With the way they have approached things this spring, it would not be a surprise to see Anderson find a way to crack into the starting rotation within the first couple of months of the regular season. If he can keep up the way he's pitched so far in spring training, then it certainly seems like that would be the right call for a team ready to win now.
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.