Detroit Tigers are Trying to Trade Pitcher Mike Pelfrey

The Detroit Tigers are shopping swingman Mike Pelfrey to interested teams but probably won’t get much of anything in return.

The Detroit Tigers have been in contact with at least one team regarding veteran swingman Mike Pelfrey, according to a tweet by Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press.

The Tigers’ only hope to trade Pelfrey and get anything back in return would be to eat his salary, and it looks as if they’re willing to do that. Even still, the Tigers would be looking at a relative pittance in return.

Pelfrey is basically a replacement level pitcher at this point in his career. If the Tigers do find a taker they’d be looking at getting something like a low level relief prospect in return or, more likely, the famous “player to be named later or cash considerations.”

The big indication here is that it looks like the Tigers do not have room on their roster for Pelfrey. With Anibal Sanchez moving to the bullpen and Matt Boyd looking to have locked up a rotation spot, the Tigers do not have room for another long-reliever or emergency starter.

Teams often give defer to player with large salaries when making final roster decisions, but the Tigers have already cut ties with Mark Lowe and his $5.5 million contract. Pelfrey is slated to earn $8 million and Sanchez is due $16 million this year (plus $5 million to buyout his option for 2018).

This is good news for Tigers fans hoping the team can compete in 2017. These recent pitching moves are being made to give the best players opportunities on the roster. Hopefully Boyd can take advantage of the rotation spot and stay productive for the entire season.

The only downside to moving Boyd into the MLB rotation to start the year is that it limits the team’s depth at the starting pitcher position. Teams usually need about 10 different starting pitchers to get through a season. The Tigers don’t have much in the way of legitimate starting pitching options in the minor leagues.