Detroit Tigers: Daniel Norris prepares for first start against former team

The Detroit Tigers are 1-9 in their last ten games and will be looking to bounce back after falling to the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday night.

It’s been a particularly rough stretch for the Detroit Tigers coming out of the All-Star break in what has been a dreadful season. As the Tigers continue to desperately search for a 30th win on the year, starting pitcher Daniel Norris is gearing up for a more personal battle on Saturday night.

Back in 2015, Norris, along with fellow starter Matthew Boyd, was dealt from the Toronto Blue Jays to the Detroit Tigers as part of the David Price trade. Now, nearly four years later to the day, Daniel Norris is set to start on the mound against his former team for the first time since becoming a Tiger.

Norris was drafted by Toronto in the second round of the 2011 MLB Draft and made his big league debut with the Blue Jays in 2014. The lefty made just six career starts for the Jays before being sent to Detroit and finished 2015 with a 3.68 ERA over eight starts for the Tigers.

Continuing to show promise early on in the Motor City, Norris finished 2016 with an ERA of 3.38 in 13 starts. 2017, however, did not quite go as planned, finishing the year with a 5.31 ERA followed by 5.68 last season in 2018.

So far this year, Daniel Norris is looking at yet another subpar season. Norris has appeared in 19 games for Detroit in 2019 and carries an ERA of 5.14 as well as a 2-8 record.

Norris has seen his former club once this year, coming out of the bullpen back on March 30th during the opening series of the season and surrendered just two hits in 2.1 IP. Saturday marks the first time since becoming a Tiger that Norris gets a chance to start against his former club.

Taking the hill against Norris for the Blue Jays is rookie Trent Thornton. Thornton is 3-7 through 20 starts for Toronto this season with a 5.25 ERA. The righty made his major league debut on March 31st against the Tigers and allowed no runs on two hits and struck out eight Detroit batters, receiving a no-decision in a game the Tigers went on to win 4-3.

Hopefully, Norris’ eagerness to prove something against the club that traded him away helps the Tigers earn a much-needed win. As always, the starter will need run support from the struggling offense, a difficult ask after Friday’s 12-1 blowout loss.