With three wild card spots available in each league and several small-market teams exceeding expectations, the 2023 MLB trade deadline figures to have a more accessible buyers market than maybe ever before. That free-for-all does not apply to the Detroit Tigers (47-59), but they will play a big role on Tuesday, nevertheless.

“The Tigers are definitely trading starters Eduardo Rodriguez and Michael Lorenzen, it’s simply a case of seeing which team blinks first with their high price tag,” Bob Nightengale of USA Today reported Monday. Fans have had their strong suspicions, but now they can begin planning for 2024 and beyond.

It is a bitter pill to swallow for a franchise that has not reached the playoffs since 2014 and is heading towards its seventh-straight losing season. There was a sliver of belief that a poor American League Central could convince the organization to stay in the fight, but a six-and-a-half-game deficit foretells another bleak end.

Still, the Tigers can come away from the trade deadline in higher spirits if they land a couple of future key fixtures. Eduardo Rodriguez is enjoying a career year and has already won a World Series ring with the Boston Red Sox. His 2.95 ERA and valued experience makes him a worthwhile commodity for a variety of clubs like the Los Angeles Dodgers, Tampa Bay Rays and Philadelphia Phillies.

He still has three years left on his contract, but an opt-out clause can allow him to hit the free agent market this offseason. Rodriguez thusly becomes a two-month rental if he decides to cash in on his noteworthy 2023.

Michael Lorenzen comes with similar appeal. He has had a stellar start to the second-half of the season after merely being the Tigers' obligatory AL All-Star representative. The impending free agent has not fulfilled the star potential first envisioned for him a decade ago, but he can fortify the middle part of a title contender's starting rotation.

Lorenzen should draw particular interest from some of smaller-market franchises like the Rays, Cincinnati Reds and Baltimore Orioles. Simply put, Detroit general manger Scott Harris should have no trouble trading away his top two pitchers. Hopefully, a fruitful deadline can finally bring an end to this endless rebuild.