Detroit Tigers should make this trade with the Toronto Blue Jays

Danny Barnes

Also joining the Detroit Tigers in this hypothetical move is reliever Danny Barnes.

The 28-year-old spent the better part of two seasons dominating the upper minors in 2015 and 2016. He pitched to a 2.48 ERA and a 1.102 WHIP in 98 career Double-A frames.

In 31.2 lifetime innings at Triple-A, the right hander has allowed just three earned runs and two walks.

That spits out to a tidy 0.85 ERA and 0.6 walks per nine frames.

It also doesn’t hurt that the reliever has a struck out 430 batters in 326 lifetime minor league innings.

In his first significant taste of action in the Majors last season, Barnes looked the part of a dependable, big league, bullpen arm.

The Blue Jays pitcher appeared in 60 games, tallying 66 innings.

In those 66 frames, the Princeton product turned in a 4.15 SIERA, a 3.55 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP.

He also missed bats at an encouraging rate, thanks to an 11.7 swinging strike percentage and 8.45 strikeouts per nine innings.

Hypothetical role with the Detroit Tigers

With two years remaining (according to Spotrac) before he enters arbitration—not to mention three more years of controllability after that—Barnes could be a long-term bullpen piece in the Motor City.

Despite the controllability, the reliever is somewhat buried in a Toronto bullpen that also features Roberto Osuna, Ryan Tepera, Dominic Leone and Aaron Loup.

Next season, it wouldn’t be a shock to see the likes of Tom Koehler and Joe Biagini see increased work in relief roles.

In Detroit

In this hypothetical scenario, he’d immediately slot in as one of Detroit’s late-inning bullpen options. Depending on how the rest of the offseason shakes out in this, Barnes could be a closing candidate if Shane Greene and Alex Wilson are dealt.