5 former All-Stars Tigers can still sign in free agency for 2025 season

Even though the Tigers seem preoccupied with indecision over how much they really want Alex Bregman, there are impact additions they can still make across the board. The free agent pool has thinned out a lot as we near spring training, but there are multiple former All-Stars still available who could come cheap on short-term deals, which is right in Detroit's wheelhouse.

For a few of the others? If the Tigers want to get better and be considered serious contenders, they're just going to have to pony up.

5 former All-Stars Tigers can still sign in free agency for 2025 season

Kenley Jansen

Jason Foley is likely to take over as the Tigers' closer next season, but AJ Hinch likes to play a little fast and loose with his bullpen usage and could turn Foley into a setup man if the opportunity to add a four-time All-Star like Jansen was of interest.

Jansen is going into his 16th MLB season and had his best campaign since 2021 with the Red Sox last year. At 37, it's unlikely he'll get anything more than a two-year deal, so he could be a perfect veteran addition to the relief corps that wouldn't break the bank.

Alex Bregman

Bregman is the Tigers' last real hope to make a impact addition to the lineup. They're still thought of as frontrunners to get him, but weeks of silence on anything substantial has definitely made Tigers fans want to rip their hair out.

Except for his asking price, Bregman is everything the Tigers could want. He's a battle-tested veteran with a bat that consistently gives a club 20+ homers in a season. A few more teams have entered the running for him in recent weeks, so the Tigers need to make a move soon if they're really serious about him.

Max Scherzer

Former Tiger Justin Verlander signed a one-year deal with the Giants for 2025, but his former co-ace is still on the market. Like Verlander, Scherzer had an injury-shortened 2024 season, but Scherzer was a lot better when he was healthy.

He hasn't announced intentions to retire, and his market is slowly materializing; Jon Heyman wrote around New Year's Day that four teams had expressed interest in him. It's unlikely he'd make much more than Verlander on a one-year deal, so the Tigers could bring him back for one last hurrah.

Lance Lynn

Reports have suggested the Tigers are interested in Cardinals pitchers Erick Fedde and Steven Matz, but they could also consider former Cardinal Lance Lynn, who St. Louis declined their club option on at the beginning of the offseason as a cost-cutting measure.

Lynn had a decent 2024 season despite missing the last two months of the year with knee inflammation, and after performing nicely on a one-year, $11 million deal in St. Louis, he could come cheap now that he's back on the market.

David Robertson

Robertson will be 40 just about a week into the 2025 season, but he's shown no signs of slowing down even as he's gotten older. He pitched 72 innings in relief for the Rangers last year for a 3.00 ERA, and he's plateaued nicely over the last three seasons (2.82 ERA), making him a dependable bullpen option.

He's been bouncing around on one-year deals since 2022, and he could easily add the Tigers to that list, which would give Detroit an experienced, versatile relief arm in a very young bullpen.