AJ Hinch has blunt quote on Trey Sweeney after shortstop's demotion to Triple-A

On Saturday, the Tigers demoted rookie shortstop Trey Sweeney and reactivated Matt Vierling after his second stint on the IL with a shoulder issue. Fans had already lost patience with Sweeney, who was batting .221 with a .594 OPS at the time of his demotion, and management finally ended up on the same page.

Vierling picked up a hit, a walk, and an RBI in his return as the Tigers' starting center fielder that same day, which gave Parker Meadows (who has also been struggling since his return from the IL) a day off.

Sweeney's demotion means that almost all of the rookies who were called up at the end of last season are back down in Triple-A or injured. Jackson Jobe is out for the season with Tommy John and Jace Jung, Sweeney, and Justyn-Henry Malloy are in Triple-A, leaving Wenceel Pérez and Dillon Dingler as the last men standing.

AJ Hinch provided some insight into the team's thinking on Sweeney's demotion and was as straightforward as can be.

"He knows he has work to do and knows he has to play," he said. "I always say players know by how I use them — or don't. I don't want to say he expected [the demotion to Toledo], because no player really knows what the plan is, but he knows what he can control: going down, playing hard, working on his game, and being available at a moment’s notice."

AJ Hinch shed some light on Tigers' thinking after Trey Sweeney's demotion to Triple-A

Sweeney had seen his playing time cut down significantly since the beginning of June; he was given only seven starts this month before being sent down. Javy Báez's unexpected rise this season and Zach McKinstry's hot bat edged Sweeney out of starting lineups, though he occasionally got opportunities as a pinch runner or hitter.

Hinch made it sound like Sweeney's return was inevitable — "He'll be back at some point, but this an opportunity for him to go play a little bit more" — but acknowledged that he had some things to clean up before the Tigers would welcome him back to the majors.

He was immediately slotted into the Mud Hens' lineup on Saturday and went hitless through two at-bats, but he did get a hit and a walk on Sunday. The Tigers have a history of offering their most promising talents second chances after stints in the minors — Spencer Torkelson, Jung, and Meadows have all gotten a few themselves — and although Báez is so much better than anyone planned this year, Sweeney still projects as the Tigers' shortstop of the future. A demotion was the right call, but Tigers fans should still be optimistic that he'll be able to build back up.