Detroit Tigers: Wily Peralta signed to minor league deal for $1.5 million
By Tyler Kotila
The Detroit Tigers have agreed to a minor league contract with right-handed pitcher Wily Peralta. Not exactly a franchise-altering deal, but he will join the club at Spring Training. The former starting pitcher turned bullpen arm has been in the big leagues for eight seasons.
He will now compete to turn some heads with the Tigers at the big league level, or at the very minimum add depth and insurance for the Toledo Mud Hens at the Triple-A level. Peralta’s minor-league deal is worth $1.5 million with incentives involved as well.
Thirty-one-year-old Peralta came into the league with the Milwaukee Brewers but spent the last two seasons in the American League(AL) Central with the Kansas City Royals. He will stay in the AL Central after inking his minor-league deal with the Tigers organization.
Barring any COVID protocol issue, Peralta will be joining the Tigers for Spring Training which is starting to see players begin to report. Again, this deal is nothing monumental, but it does add depth on a Tigers team likely to be pretty rough again in 2021.
The Detroit Tigers agreed to a minor league contract with Wily Peralta, adding pitching depth to the organization.
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Last season with the Royals, Peralta’s stats are not as pretty as prior years, but that just means that the 2020 season may not be all that indicative of what he can be.
With him being on a minor league contract, the expectations have to be low for him.
In 2020, Peralta pitched in 42 games for the Royals, totaling 40.1 innings pitched for them. He featured a 5.80 ERA with a 1.59 WHIP, walking 19 and surrendering 45 hits.
But a year earlier in 2019, Peralta pitched in 37 games, totaling 34.1 innings pitched with a much more respectable 3.67 and 1.49 WHIP.
While he has not started a game since 2017, he was once a starter and could very well be thrust into that role once again if needed.
The Tigers could stretch him out and get him back into a starter role with the Mud Hens at the Triple-A level after Spring Training when the 2021 season starts.
Looking at it as a minimal addition for depth, it is still a good signing by the front office. Bringing him in on a minor league contract to provide injury insurance and overall depth should pay dividends in 2021.
Peralta is nothing special, but he is serviceable and if Tigers fans have had to suffer through Jordan Zimmermann the past few years, then Peralta is fine. If he comes up to make a spot start, or provide depth in the bullpen, there is no reason that he is not better than some of the other arms the Tigers have thrown out there these past few years.
On paper, it is just a depth move, but it’s a good depth move, one that can go without criticism towards General Manager (GM) Al Avila and the rest of the front office.
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Hopefully, Peralta can get through the protocols quickly and get to Detroit Tigers Spring Training in Lakeland!