Detroit Tigers: Recently-Released Players Worth Taking a Flier on

Detroit Tigers general manager Al Avila added plenty of depth in the offseason. With Opening Day around the corner, here are four players the Tigers should take a flier on.

Detroit Tigers fans didn’t see much Major League activity during the offseason.

Cameron Maybin was the only veteran traded, while Victor Alcantara (traded for Maybin) and Mikie Mahtook represented the only players general manager Al Avila traded for.

Instead, the club brought in a bevy of players on minor league deals to provide added options in Spring Training.

These players included Omar Infante, Efren Navarro, Alex Presley, Edward Mujica and Brendan Ryan among others.

With Opening Day fast approaching, it is never a bad time to add depth.

The Tigers used 22 position players and 22 pitchers last season, including nine different starters.

Considering Tyler Collins, Dixon Machado and Steven Moya are all out of options, it is conceivable that Detroit could lose some of the team’s more prominent depth pieces.

It remains to be seen what the Tigers roster will look like on Opening Day, but some depth certainly wouldn’t hurt.

With the regular season just around the corner teams around the league are beginning to pare down their respective rosters.

This means plenty of players being let go.

Here are a few recently-released players the Detroit Tigers should take a filer on.

Chris Coghlan
Age: 31
Positions: Left Field, Right Field, First Base, Second Base and Third Base
Hits: Right-Handed

Another player cut by the Philadelphia Phillies in Spring Training, the National League East franchise announced the move on Tuesday morning in a tweet.

Philadelphia’s official Twitter account tweeted:

“#Phillies have released OF Chris Coghlan.”

Coghlan is more or less what the Detroit Tigers were looking for when the team signed Mike Aviles last offseason—a super-utility player who can bring value on offense.

The veteran only hit .188 last season with a .290 on-base percentage, but those numbers were spread out over 99 combined games with Oakland and Chicago. Coghlan’s numbers with the Cubs were much more encouraging.

In 48 games, the former Rookie of the Year turned in a strong .391 on-base percentage to go with 21 runs scored, 16 RBI, seven doubles, two triples, a home run and a stolen base.

If he can post similar numbers to those, or the stats he turned in during the 2015 campaign with Chicago (.341 on-base percentage, 41 RBI, 25 doubles, 16 home runs, 11 stolen bases and six triples in 440 at-bats), he’d make an ideal depth piece.

Vance Worley
Age: 29
Position: Pitcher
Throws: Right-Handed

Last but not least, Vance Worley was reportedly let go by the Nationals on Wednesday.

The Washington Post’s Chelsea James reported the move in a tweet on Wednesday morning. James tweeted:

“Nationals announce they have released Vance Worley. Trevor Gott, AJ Colego to Triple A. Jacob Turner and Solano re-assigned to minors, too.”

Worley has plenty of past success in the Majors, whether it be with Philadelphia and Pittsburgh early in his career, or with Baltimore last season.

The pitcher owns a career 3.75 ERA, and posted a 3.53 number in the category last season. A potential swingman, Worley made 47 relief appearances and 29 starts over the last few seasons.

His relief outings have included 19 games finished and a save.

Next: The Tigers Rotation Will Look Like This

The former Pirate would give the Tigers another depth piece in the rotation alongside the likes of Buck Farmer, Warwick Saupold and Myles Jaye.