Detroit Tigers: Should they pursue right-hander Alex Meyer?

The Detroit Tigers could use added depth in their rotation. Adding a lottery ticket like the 28-year-old Alex Meyer should be right up Al Avila’s alley.

Detroit Tigers general manager Al Avila has some shopping to do this winter. While he will be more of a seller than a buyer, there are still plenty of affordable players the Detroit Tigers could consider adding to their roster, both for the short-term and the long-term of the franchise.

One such area of need is in the starting rotation, where the team is losing Francisco Liriano and could conceivably shop nearly everyone else, including Matthew Boyd, Blaine Hardy, Jordan Zimmermann and possibly even Michael Fulmer.

The likely scenario is Detroit pursuing a few aging veteran starters, such as Marco Estrada or Josh Tomlin, to use them as potential trade bait next July.

However, the team could look at a few younger pitching options as well, particularly if they think that they have the ability to contribute for multiple seasons. Of course, players like that aren’t readily available on the free agent market – at least not at costs that Avila and co. are willing to pay.

The ones who do have that potential come with plenty of risk – like recently released Angels right-hander Alex Meyer.

Alex Meyer

Meyer was a first round pick by the Nationals way back in 2011. He was sitting pretty on numerous prospect rankings while he cruised through the minors – appearing destined for greatness at the big league level.

Multiple shoulder injuries have put the kabosh on that, as the six-foot-nine (yes you read that right) right-hander has only thrown 95.1 big league innings. His numbers have been okay, with a 4.63 ERA (4.49 FIP) and 10.10 K/9.

The majority of his work came in 2017, when he tossed 67.1 innings (13 starts) for the Angels, posting a 3.74 ERA (4.14 FIP) with a 10.02 K/9 and a 1.34 WHIP. However, shoulder injuries cost him all of 2018, and a recent setback has his availability for the start of 2019 in question.

Obviously, injuries are a major concern here. The Angels didn’t think he was worth keeping on their 40-man roster, which says a lot considering their lack of pitching depth. Still, his velocity and high strikeout totals make him worth at least a look.

If Detroit thinks he has the potential to contribute in 2019, he is worth taking on as a minor league free agent. He has the pedigree and potential to immediately step into Detroit’s rotation next season – and would be under team control through 2022 if signed.

Meyer is one of many injury-riddled but intriguing free agent options for Al Avila and the Detroit Tigers to target this winter.