Detroit Tigers: Who fills open 40-man roster spot?

The Detroit Tigers have an open spot on their 40-man roster after designating Drew VerHagen for assignment. Who fills that spot?

The Detroit Tigers made a pair of roster moves on Monday, adding outfielder Mike Gerber to the 25-man roster. To make room, the team designated right-hander Drew VerHagen for assignment.

VerHagen’s last appearance likely did him in, as he walked two of the three batters he faced. He is currently 0-1 with a 6.30 ERA. He’s posted an 11/7 K/BB ratio in 10 innings of work. VerHagen bounced between Triple-A and the Tigers over the last five seasons. He went 3-5 with a 5.04 ERA in 94.2 big league innings in that time, split between being a starter and a reliever.

While these two moves look directly related, it’s really a case of two distinct moves. Getting Gerber is primarily to give the team extra flexibility to pinch-hit in the Pittsburgh series. It wouldn’t be surprising to see him sent back down in short order, possibly to recall a reliever like Johnny Barbato or Chad Bell.

Getting rid of VerHagen was done to eventually replace him with someone else, someone who is not currently on the 40-man roster. Gerber already had a 40-man roster spot, so while he replaces VerHagen on the 25-man roster for now, the 40-man is now at 39 with VerHagen’s designation.

So now the question becomes: who will take VerHagen’s spot on the 40-man? The Tigers have plenty of options, some internal and external. Here’s a look at a few of the more likely scenarios.