1 trade candidate from each MLB team the Detroit Tigers should target

Detroit Tigers trade ideas: National League East

Atlanta Braves

Tyler Matzek

Maybe this one is a little bit of recency bias after Matzek dominated the postseason and really put himself on the map to the casual fan.

A dominant lefty out of the ‘pen for the 2021 World Champion Braves, Matzek came back onto the scene in 2020 after a few years out of the majors striking out 43 batters in 29 innings pitched. The former 11th overall pick by Colorado in the 2009 draft followed that up in 2021 with 77 K’s in 63 innings, and a 2.57 ERA.

Matzek could be that dominant left-hander out of the bullpen the Tigers need referencing often in this list already.

Miami Marlins

Lewis Brinson

Brinson has been a top prospect seemingly forever, and to many pundits, the glow has worn off.

There was a period late in the season when Brinson seemed confident and ready to contribute at the Major League Level. The Marlins surely want to see what Brinson has to offer if the production he ended 2021 with carries over to ’22.

There are some who feel Brinson may not get that chance with the Fish, and the Tigers could potentially get him at an affordable price. If so, Brinson should be added to the center-field competition for Detroit going forward.

I was tempted to put one of the Marlins’ young pitching phenoms in this spot, but I snapped out of it. “Snapper’d” out of it? Fish puns? No? Ok then!

New York Mets

Jeff McNeil

Have you noticed a theme here? I love versatile players. McNeil isn’t the best fielder out there, just ask Francisco Lindor. The right-handed fielding, left-handed hitting former all-star is serviceable anywhere he plays in the field, and when his bat is cooking there’s no doubt he’s an everyday major leaguer.

It’s that Lindor incident specifically that makes me think his days in Queens are numbered, and why not have him be the guy here in Detroit. He’s a blue-collar player who would be beloved by the Michigan faithful.

Philadelphia Phillies

Ranger Suarez

There’s no chance the competitive Philadelphia Phillies are going to trade a pitcher who can start, relieve, do whatever is asked, and had a 5.8 WAR in 2021.

It was a real coming-out party for the southpaw, who had a 1.36 ERA in 106 innings pitched.

I’ll quit while I’m ahead, he’ll be a Phillie in 2022. I threw him on this list to put the idea of Suarez coming to the Motor City out there in the universe. Similar to how Dave Bautista got his dream buddy cop movie with Jason Momoa off the ground.

Washington Nationals

Josh Bell

Another name I could’ve thrown out there in my first base coverage, Bell is set to be a free agent after 2022.

The Tigers could trade for Bell, have Torkelson’s service time clock tick until they feel like they want to bring him up, and see if Bell can provide them trade bait or stick around and DH depending on how Miguel Cabrera performs.

It would be around a $9 million dollar commitment in 2022.

If Bell is ripping the cover off the ball, he may supplant Cabrera full time. It’s an interesting idea at the very least. Bell did blast 27 homers in 2022. That power would be great sandwiched between Torkelson and Candelario for years to come.