The Detroit Tigers made a few moves involving their bullpen last month in hopes of finding better options.
For starters, the Tigers designated veteran John Brebbia for assignment, who had a terrible 7.71 ERA in 19 appearances out of the pen. Detroit eventually released Brebbia, who had cleared waivers.
To take Brebbia’s spot on the big league roster, the Tigers picked up flame-throwing Carlos Hernandez off waivers. In addition to those moves, Detroit shockingly parted ways with lefty Matt Gage towards the end of June after only six relief appearances. Then, they brought up a new southpaw from the minors in Dietrich Enns.
The 32-year-old Gage didn’t have to wait long for a new opportunity to come knocking after deciding to take his chances in free agency. The San Francisco Giants signed Gage to a minor league pact at the beginning of this month.
Former Tigers Hurler Matt Gage Is Back in the Majors with San Francisco Giants
When Gage joined the Giants, he was instantly assigned to Triple-A Sacramento. Based on how well he pitched with the Tigers, it was only a matter of time before he would be back in the major leagues.
On Friday, the Giants announced that they’ve selected Gage’s contract from Triple-A. To make room for the ex-Tiger on the 26 and 40-man rosters, San Francisco kicked southpaw Scott Alexander to the curb.
#SFGiants roster moves:
— SFGiants (@SFGiants) July 18, 2025
• LHP Matt Gage selected from Triple-A Sacramento.
• LHP Scott Alexander cleared waivers and elected free agency.
The former Tigers pitcher only made five appearances with the Giants’ Triple-A affiliate. He gave up two hits, two walks, and a run but recorded four strikeouts in 5.1 innings. Opponents also hit .118 off the southpaw.
When he was with the Tigers, Gage did his job in his six appearances. The veteran pitcher did not allow a single run in 5.2 innings of work. He allowed seven hits and two walks, but recorded three strikeouts.
However, the ex-Tiger’s advanced stats tell a different story, as opponents were hitting .304, but the hard hit rate was 35%, which is lower than the MLB average (39.5%). It will be interesting to see what Gage can do as he’s been gifted another chance to prove he can pitch at the MLB level.