Detroit Tigers Trade Bryan Holaday to the Texas Rangers—What it Means

The Detroit Tigers traded Bryan Holaday to the Texas Rangers for catcher Bobby Wilson and minor league pitcher Myles Jaye.

Well, it almost worked. Bryan Holaday almost single-handedly forced his way onto the Opening Day roster of the Detroit Tigers. Almost. The catcher was dealt to the Texas Rangers for fellow catcher Bobby Wilson and minor league pitcher Myles Jaye.

Detroit announced the move on Twitter on Tuesday night.

Holaday, a sixth-round pick out of TCU by the Tigers in 2010, played in 108 games over the span of four season in Detroit. For his time in Motown, the backstop hit .251 with 30 RBI, 28 runs scored, 12 doubles and three home runs. He received the most playing time in 2014. As Alex Avila’s backup, Holaday hit .231 with 15 RBI in 62 games played.

In a bid to make the team this season, despite the presence of Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Holaday saw time at positions other than catcher. And oh yeah, he went bananas at the plate. The TCU product hit a blistering .438 with 12 RBI, seven runs scored, four home runs, three doubles and only two strikeouts in 16 games.

He’ll have more of a chance to make an impact in Texas than with the Tigers.

Wilson and Jaye

Detroit is adding yet another Wilson to the organization in the form of Bobby Wilson. The 32-year-old backstop will take over for Holaday as the team’s third catcher. Unless something unforeseen happens to James McCann or Saltalamacchia, Wilson will likely spend the year in Triple-A before acting as insurance down the stretch in September when rosters expand. 

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Over the course of his seven year, big league career, Wilson has played for four different clubs. He spent 2008-2012 with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim before resurfacing with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2014. The catcher split 2015 between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Rangers.

Since breaking into the bigs with the Halos in 2008, Wilson is a career .204 hitter. He has only managed 25 doubles, nine home runs and 51 RBI as a Major Leaguer. As you can imagine, swing the bat isn’t the catcher’s meal ticket—defense is. Wilson has posted a 2.3 dWAR since 2010. All of that playing time has largely come in a reserve role.

Jaye has spent time in the minor league systems of both the Toronto Blue Jays and the Chicago White Sox. Chicago flipped him to Texas in December, and now Jaye finds himself back in the American League Central.

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A starting pitcher by trade, the 24-year-old threw 147.2 innings for the White Sox Double-A affiliate last season. Over those innings he went 12-9, allowing only 0.49 home runs per nine innings and pitching to a 3.29 ERA.

After an offseason that saw the Tigers trade away Chad Green, Luis Cessa and Kyle Lobstein, Jaye will help give the team more starting depth in the minors.

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