3 non-roster invites who could make an impact for the Tigers

With pitchers and catchers having already reported to spring training and the rest of the team set to join them early next week, we're just about ready for baseball in 2025. And with the way the Tigers' offseason has shaped up, there are plenty of reasons to be confident about this team getting back into the playoff hunt for the second year in a row.

Even with the roster being as strong as it is, there are a couple of non-roster invitees heading down to Lakeland who could make a real impact on the major league club in 2025. Certainly, not least of whom is infield prospect Hao-Yu Lee, who finished 2024 as the eighth-best prospect in the Tigers' system, according to MLB Pipeline.

Lee was a force at Double-A Erie last year. He hit .298/.363/.488 with 12 homers and 16 steals in 87 games, and his plate discipline is among the best in the entire organization. There are questions about whether Lee's power will translate to the majors, but assuming the plate discipline sticks he has a good chance to be a major league regular.

Javier Baez certainly shouldn't hold Lee back, but it looks like Trey Sweeney is set to get the majority of the reps at short at present. If Sweeney struggles in the majors like he did last year though, that could open the door for the Tigers to push Lee into making his debut.

These 3 non-roster invitees stand a good chance at cracking the Tigers' roster in 2025

It might be a bit bold given his injury problems last year and the recent news that he received a PRP injection in his right shoulder earlier in January, but flamethrower Wilmer Flores has a good a chance as anyone to make some noise in the Tigers bullpen in 2025. That is, if he can stay healthy.

Back in 2023, Flores was a top-three prospect for the Tigers and he spent the year mowing down batters at Double-A. 2024 wasn't as kind to the righty though, as the velocity got to him and he missed several months with a shoulder issue. He posted an unsightly 8.53 ERA in 25 1/3 innings at Triple-A Toledo and simply didn't look like himself.

That's due to change in 2025, however. Flores wasn't quite back to 100% at the end of last year, as he was down a couple ticks of velocity during his handful of appearances in September. However, he still managed to strike out 10 batters in 7 2/3 innings after returning from injury. If Flores can stay healthy, it won't be long before the former top prospect is banging down the door to the Tigers bullpen.

The Tigers have another post-hype guy in camp in the form of Jordan Balazovic. The former Twins righty was originally drafted back in 2016 and was a stud prospect in the Minnesota's organization for several years. He collapsed a bit after missing the 2020 season and struggling at Triple-A in 2022.

Balazovic was having some underlying success in 2024, pitching to a 5.60 ERA but with a much more intriguing 3.26 FIP and 30.1% strikeout rate. Nonetheless, the Twins designated him for assignment back in July of last year and he left the US entirely, opting to sign a deal with the Doosan Bears of the KBO. The righty returned to MLB after signing a minor league deal with the Tigers earlier this winter.

Balazovic was successful with the Bears, pitching to a 4.26 ERA with a 3.59 FIP in 57 innings. He also moved back to the rotation in Korea, making 11 starts after spending the previous 18 months working out of the bullpen for the Twins. It's not yet clear whether the Tigers plan to use Balazovic out of the bullpen or if they intend to get him back into a starting role.

Regardless of where he's pitching, Balazovic had good inputs in 2024 but the results just weren't there. If he can put up that kind of effort again, things will work out in his favor. And it shouldn't take long before he's throwing meaningful innings in Detroit.