Detroit Tigers: 3 starting pitchers to sign this offseason

Another option for the Detroit Tigers to consider is Rick Porcello if they want to revisit an “old friend” on a bargain contract.

The organization could pursue a reunion contract with a few former Detroit Tigers players, and Rick Porcello is one of them. While the real reunion contract will be when the organization goes after Justin Verlander, for now, Porcello is an option to consider.

As the organization figures out which players are best to sign, Porcello was overpaid by the New York Mets during the 2020 season and should be targeted by the Tigers. If the team wants to sign Porcello to a cost-effective contract, so be it, it will be beneficial for the Tigers to at least explore a contract with him.

Porcello may not be the pitcher he was when he departed the Tigers organization in 2014, but he is still an arm that could slot into that third role and hopefully find some success. For the Mets in 2020, Porcello made 12 starts with a 1-7 record, a 5.64 ERA, and 1.51 WHIP for the Mets.

Keep in mind; the Mets were paying him $10 million on a one-year contract to put up those numbers. It may not be as bad as the Tigers paying Zimmermann $25 million a year to be terrifyingly bad, but Porcello could have been better.

If the Tigers can snatch him up for half of what he signed for with the Mets at, he could be worth pursuing. Even a one-year deal at $5 million could bring some trade suitors if Porcello can get off to a hot start.

He could be signed at a low cost, thrown into an environment with a minimal amount of pressure, and try to settle in as a number three starter. If all goes well, he can be shipped out at the deadline or kept around for the 2021 season, where he chips in to help the organization win some ballgames.