The Detroit Tigers lost the opening game of a three-game set against the New York Mets on Monday. Juan Soto had six RBIs to pull the Amazins through despite tough pitching performances. Heading into Tuesday's game, Tigers manager AJ Hinch made an unrelated pitching move, pushing Chris Paddack to the bullpen. Detroit Free Press reporter Evan Petzold reported on the move.
“Chris Paddack has been moved to the Tigers' bullpen, manager A.J. Hinch said. He is no longer in the starting rotation,” Petzold reported.
Paddack came over from the Minnesota Twins at the MLB trade deadline to bolster the Tigers' starting pitching depth. In six starts in the Motor City, Paddack has a 5.40 ERA and has only finished six innings once. They could use some depth in their bullpen as well, which is what Paddack can provide.
The Tigers also traded for Charlie Morton at the deadline, who struggled on Monday against the Mets. He was pulled two outs into the fourth inning after allowing six runs. The veteran has a 5.81 ERA in his six starts since the deadline, leading to many questions about the depth behind Tarik Skubal.
With Keider Montero hurt and Jack Flaherty struggling, the Tigers are not going to be scary to face in Game 2 of the postseason. There may be no harder matchup in Game 1, as Skubal looks to lock down his second straight Cy Young, but their pitching gets much worse after that.
Paddack will head to the bullpen, where he will likely stay for the duration of Detroit's playoff run. He is an unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, so good performances deep into October could earn him a contract. That should be enough motivation to get the best out of the veteran down the stretch.
Paddack also has experience pitching successfully out of the bullpen in the postseason. In 2023, he pitched 3.2 scoreless innings in the playoffs for the Twins. He walked none and struck out six of the 12 batters he faced.
Sawyer Gipson-Long takes the mound for the Tigers in Game 2 versus the Mets on Tuesday.
