Detroit Tigers: Win-Win Scenario with Steven Moya and Daniel Stumpf

Detroit Tigers players Steven Moya and Daniel Stumpf will both begin the season at Toledo after missing out on the Opening Day roster. Given Detroit’s roster construction, this is a win-win.

Detroit Tigers general manager Al Avila and the rest of the team’s decision makers entered Spring Training with a number of players out of minor league options.

These included Steven Moya, Dixon Machado and Tyler Collins.

It was entirely conceivable that the Tigers could lose one, two or all three of the players if they were exposed to waivers.

Considering Detroit doesn’t have the best depth, it would have hurt the team to lose the trio.

Elsewhere, the Tigers had Daniel Stumpf in camp as a Rule 5 draft pick.

The club’s first selection in the Major League portion of the draft since fellow pitcher Kyle Bloom was selected in 2008, Stumpf had upside, but faced an uphill battle in Spring Training.

With a career 3.22 ERA in the minors— not to mention 8.9 strikeouts and just 0.5 home runs allowed per nine innings—the left-hander has the potential make an impact out of the bullpen.

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However, he was buried on the organizational depth chart by Justin Wilson, Kyle Ryan and Blaine Hardy.

Stumpf

With the Tigers only bringing Wilson and Ryan north as left-handed relief options, Stumpf was placed on waivers.

He was offered back to his former club, Kanas City.

After going unclaimed, the southpaw became a free agent. This was due to him being selected twice in the Major League portion of the Rule 5 draft.

The 26-year-old would later re-sign with the Tigers. Detroit announced the move on the team’s official Twitter account, tweeting:

"“After electing free agency, LHP Daniel Stumpf agreed to a major league contract with the #Tigers. He will be optioned to Triple-A Toledo.”"

Last season, Detroit used 22 different pitchers. Of those 22, 20 made appearances out of the bullpen.

The Tigers used a number of relievers who struggled in brief outings with the club, including two left-handers in Joe Mantiply (16.88 ERA) and Drew VerHagen (5.41 FIP).

Now, with Hardy and Stumpf, the team has improved its overall pitching depth.

It certainly doesn’t hurt that Stumpf could eventually develop into consistent bullpen presence in the coming years.

Moya

Detroit received similarly good news in terms of keeping Moya in the organization.

The club’s Twitter accounted tweeted on Friday:

"“Today, the #Tigers announce that outfielder Steven Moya cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Triple-A Toledo.”"

The 25-year-old is still young, and has the potential to develop into a pinch-hitting power threat if not more.

Moya still strikes out at an incredibly high rate, but there’s no denying his power.

The slugger turned in a .245 ISO, a .500 slugging percentage, five home runs, four doubles and a pair of triples in just 100 plate appearances.

If he can cut down on his punch outs, he could become a Major League contributor in Detroit.

That’s better than him developing elsewhere, as Moya could have very easily become the next Chris Carter.

Carter led the league in strikeouts with 206 in 160 games for Milwaukee last season, but also paced Major League Baseball with 41 home runs.

In Closing

With Dixon Machado and Tyler Collins making the Detroit Tigers Opening Day roster, and Moya and Stumpf staying in the organization, the club managed to hold onto most of its depth heading into the 2017 season.

It wouldn’t be a shock to see Moya or Stumpf appearing in games for the team as the season progresses.

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This improved depth should certainly help the Tigers over the course of baseball’s marathon of a regular season as the club chases that elusive World Series trophy.

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