3 Tigers who won't last on the 40-man roster with spring training underway

Tigers pitchers and catchers reported to Detroit's spring training complex in Lakeland, Fla., on Wednesday. The rest of the 40-man roster and 18 non-roster invitees followed Monday to gear up for games that begin on Saturday with an afternoon match against the Phillies.

There are a few intriguing position battles to watch and storylines to follow. What will Spencer Torkelson's role be? Who will get the two open spots in the rotation? But the Tigers could also have a few tough decisions to make regarding current members of the 40-man roster who could get beaten out by NRIs.

3 Tigers who won't last on the 40-man roster with spring training underway

Ryan Kreidler

Kreidler, along with Akil Baddoo, is a name Tigers fans are familiar with seeing anytime an infielder hits the IL, as they go-to Quad-A man. He's been on and off the major league roster for three years now, and has never really been able to make anything click. Last year, when he came up for 35 games — mostly to fill in at shortstop when Javy Báez was on the IL — he hit a paltry .119 with a .369 OPS.

Non-roster invitees Jahmai Jones, Hao-Yu Lee, and Andrew Navigato should all take this as a challenge. Jones spent time in the major leagues with the Yankees last year, Lee is a top prospect (but hasn't yet hit Triple-A), and Navigato put up solid numbers in Toledo last year. Any of them could be worth a nod if Kreidler flounders in spring training.

Matt Manning

The bloom has kind of come off the rose with Manning, a former top prospect who spent most of the 2024 season in the minors. He came up a few times early in the year as the Tigers' 27th man on doubleheader rosters, but made his last major league start in mid-May and struggled in Triple-A through the rest of the season.

It might be hard for the Tigers to let go of Manning's flexibility — he could still be a decent 27th man option or come up as a long reliever in a pinch — but he's also the easiest name to shed from the 40-man in the event that any of Detroit's seven NRI pitchers impress in Lakeland.

Dillon Dingler

The Tigers seem pretty set on a Dingler-Jake Rogers platoon at catcher next season, so it's unlikely that they would shove their No. 16 prospect in 2023, but he also seems to be the most at risk of any of the rookies on the roster. He put up some unimpressive numbers at the plate in 27 games after his call up, and top prospect Thayron Liranzo could continue his streak of dominant hitting this spring. Liranzo ended the 2024 season in High-A, but is due for a call up and maybe even an accelerated track to Triple-A.

Former Mets catcher Tomás Nido could also be deemed more reliable, given his major league experience, but the Tigers are definitely going to want to see more out of Dingler during Grapefruit League games before they even consider moving him off the roster.