After adding Andrew Chafin to the Tigers bullpen this week, Scott Harris said he was still eying pitching. Now he's added Jack Flaherty to the rotation.
The Tigers have reached a reported one-year, $14 million agreement with Flaherty, a 28-year-old right-hander and former first-round draft pick whose path toward being one of the best pitchers in baseball has been derailed by injuries. He has a chance, if healthy, to get back on track in Detroit.
Flaherty is coming off his first full season since 2019 when he posted a 2.75 ERA, led the National League in WHIP and finished fourth for NL Cy Young with the Cardinals at the age of 23. Of course, that was a long time ago. In 2023, Flaherty posted a 4.99 ERA with the Cardinals and Orioles, to whom he was traded in August. His strikeout rate has dipped the past two years while his walk rate has spiked.
The silver lining is that Flaherty was able to make 27 starts last season (he did miss a couple due to minor ailments), after making 32 the prior three seasons combined due to repeated shoulder and oblique injuries. It was during a start against the Tigers in August of 2021 that Flaherty was forced off the mound after giving up back-to-back homers in the third inning when his velocity tumbled out of the blue. He had a career ERA of 3.26 before that game, 5.01 since
It would be fitting, then, for the Tigers to get him right. They have the right resources in an advanced staff of pitching coaches led by Chris Fetter. If Fetter, along with Robin Lund and Juan Nieves, can identify and implement an adjustment to Flaherty's mechanics or repertoire that helps him to get back to who he was -- he still throws as hard as he did at his best -- he might be one of the bargains of the offseason.
That's a lot to ask, and more than anyone should honestly expect. But Harris and the Tigers obviously saw something in Flaherty's performance from last season that they think they can work with. He did start missing bats again with the Orioles, with 42 strikeouts in 34 2/3 innings. He also cut down on the walks. And he's always had elite extension with his 6'4 frame. That's a start.
At the very least, Flaherty will be insurance for a young rotation that features Tarik Skubal, Casey Mize and Matt Manning, all of whom have battled injuries, and Reese Olson, who's coming off his first big-league season. The Tigers have added stability to the staff in veteran righty Kenta Maeda, who signed a two-year, $24 million deal with the club earlier this month.
In Flaherty, they're taking a flier on talent.