The Detroit Tigers are in the middle of making a second-half push towards a second-straight playoff berth, an AL Central title, and potentially the No. 1 seed in the American League. Those are the next goals for the Tigers, who have a winnable schedule for the rest of this month.
Detroit has a seven-game road trip next against the Chicago White Sox and Minnesota Twins, followed by a six-game homestand vs. the Houston Astros and Kansas City Royals, and finally a six-game road trip against the Royals and the Athletics.
However, as the Tigers prepare for this trek, they will be without one of their outfielders, who has struggled to stay healthy this season.
A.J. Hinch found out after last night's game that Matt Vierling was going for testing on his left oblique. Vierling is now on the 10-day IL
— Cody Stavenhagen (@CodyStavenhagen) August 10, 2025
"We have not eliminated the chance for him to come back," Hinch said. "The severity of it is mild, but he clearly needs to go on the IL."
Tigers Place Matt Vierling on 10-Day IL For a Strained Oblique
Ahead of their three-game series finale against the Los Angeles Angels, the Tigers announced that veteran outfielder Matt Vierling was placed on the 10-day injured list with a left oblique strain.
To take Vierling’s spot on the 26-man roster, Detroit called up infielder Trey Sweeney, who has struggled at the plate this season in the big leagues.
According to Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic, Tigers manager A.J. Hinch told reporters that they aren’t giving up on Vierling’s chances to return sometime, but said that he has a mild strain.
“We have not eliminated the chance for him to come back," he said. "The severity of it is mild, but he clearly needs to go on the IL."
Some Tigers fans weren’t happy to hear this news about Vierling, who was just activated off the 10-day injured list at the end of June. His first IL stint involved a rotator cuff strain, which forced him off the field until May, but he was back on the shelf due to inflammation.
However, in the games that the 28-year-old has played in, Vierling hasn’t done much. He’s only slashed .239/.310/.307 with a home run and 11 RBI across 31 games. The veteran’s OPS is at a disappointing .617 (career-worst) and for the month of July, he was hitting .200 with four RBI.
That said, it looked like Vierling was starting to turn things around this month, hitting .368 with a double, a home run and four RBI across seven games. But now he’ll have to go on the shelf for at least 10 days.
Without Vierling, the Tigers will likely go back to Javy Baez and maybe mix in Wenceel Perez there too. This season, Baez is hitting .269 with 11 home runs and 47 RBI. He has played 37 games in centerfield, along with 46 games at shortstop, 21 at third base and seven at second.
Meanwhile, Perez is hitting .267 with nine home runs and 25 RBI. He also has an OPS of .813, which is outstanding. The 25-year-old has played all three outfield spots, with most of his reps coming in right field (49 games).