1:03 p.m.: Canha told reporters (including Petzold) and other reporters that he had a strain in his psoas muscle, but the injury “I feel much better today» that Friday. Canha will not play today but intends to make Sunday’s lineup, and coming out of this game healthy could determine whether or not a move to the IL is necessary.
9:45 a.m.: Kerry Carpenter was placed on the Tigers’ injured list for 10 days earlier this week with what was described as lumbar spine inflammation, but the problem unfortunately turned out to be more serious. The club announced Friday that Carpenter is “currently completing rehabilitation for a lumbar spine stress fracture,” with no recovery timetable provided. Director AJ Hinch We may have more details during his pre-game chat with the media later today, but it looks like Carpenter will be out for at least a month, and potentially longer depending on the severity of the fracture.
That’s bad news for Carpenter, 26, who has quietly been Detroit’s best hitter since making his MLB debut during the 2022 season. After hitting .273/.334/.474 with 26 home runs in 572 plate appearances in 2022-23, Carpenter has reached another level this year, with a big 154 wRC+ on a .283/.342/.572 slash line. and eight home runs in his first 163 PA.
Carpenter’s production once again stood out on a Tigers lineup that struggled to generate consistent offense. Matt Vierling And Wenceel Pérez have earned more playing time thanks to their solid numbers, while among the players expected to be regulars at the start of the season, Riley Greene And Marc Canha are the only other hitters, besides Carpenter, to have hit well. However, Canha’s status is also a question mark after he was scratched from Friday’s lineup due to left hip soreness.
“It’s been bothering me for about a weekCanha told reporters, including Chris McCosky of the Detroit News. “It got worse and worse and today was the peak. I got to a point where I had to stop it.”
For now, Canha is living day to day, although he underwent tests to see if a more serious problem was causing the hip discomfort. Acquired in a trade with the Brewers last November, Canha delivered a 120 wRC+ (.247/.358/.401 with six homers) in his first 215 PA in a Tigers uniform, bouncing between the DH spot , the two corners of the outfield. positions and some occasional work at first base. Canha’s numbers were generally down in May, although one of his best hitting streaks of the season came during the final week of play, when he was hampered by his hip injury .
Needless to say, the Tigers would be hard-pressed to lose Carpenter and Canha for any notable period of time. Removing both hitters would put more pressure on Greene, Vierling and Perez to stay hot, and increase pressure on Detroit’s many struggling hitters to get on track. ColtKeith and the Jake Rogers/Carson Kelly The catching tandem has started to pick up after a dismal start to the season, but it will take a little more to dig the Tigers out of their early hole in the AL Central race. The trendy dark horse pick to win the division before the season begins, the Tigers sit in fourth place with a 28-29 record, 10 games behind the first-place Guardians.
Even though Detroit still has four months of the regular season to reduce this deficit, it’s fair to wonder if the clock is really closer to two months, as it was at the July 30 trade deadline. The Tigers could possibly be futures sellers if they stay around .500 and the Guardians (or the surprising Royals, or the defending division champion Twins) have all continued to pull away from the pack. Even if the Tigers return to contention, it’s unclear how aggressive they could be in making potential additions at the deadline, given President of Baseball Operations Scott Harris reiterated again earlier this week that the organization is not yet planning any significant increase in payroll.
“We’re not there yet as far as spending at this level, as we need to build the foundation of this team to put us in a position to fill it out with free agent signings over the coming winters.” Harris said in an interview on MLB Network with Brian Kenny (hats off to Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press). “I am convinced that the resources will be there. The Ilitch family has always supported the Tigers, and they are ready and eager to do so… We just need to develop the core that we will spend, and we also need to target the players in the coming winters who can really help us.”
The Tigers’ payroll has understandably declined as the club has gone through a long rebuilding period, and Detroit hasn’t had a winning season since going 86-75 in 2016. The Tigers’ spectacular signings Javier Baez And Eduardo Rodriguez During the 2021-22 offseason, it seemed like the rebuild was complete, but multiple throwing injuries and a near team-wide offensive slump resulted in a 96-loss season. Former general manager Al Avila was fired in August 2022, leading to Harris’ hiring a month later as the person tasked with finally getting the Motor City back into contention.
The end of Miguel CabreraThe Tigers’ contract removed the Tigers’ largest financial commitment from the books last winter, and Rodriguez left to sign with the Diamondbacks (for four years and $80 million) after opting out of the last three years and $49 million. dollars on his contract with the Tigers. Yet the team hasn’t reinvested those savings into the roster, as the Tigers opened the season with a payroll of about $97.6 million and made only modest spending last winter for Canha and the free agents. Kenta Maeda And Jack Flaherty.
Baez’s struggles have only gotten worse over his three seasons in Detroit, and the so-far disastrous nature of this contract serves as a warning to those who criticize Harris’ measured approach to spending. That said, Petzold notes that Pull SkubalThe remaining years of officiating control (through the 2026 season) could serve as a window for the Tigers to attempt to contend, as Skubal has emerged as one of the best pitchers in baseball this season. Other promising young starters along with Greene, Carpenter and Keith could already form a core good enough to compete, and if Harris and the owners refrain from spending more until more prospects arrive and establish themselves, the timeline could extend beyond Skubal’s time with the team. Of course, locking up Skubal in a big extension would be a way for the Tigers to both increase payroll and secure a core player in one move.