Breaking Down Tigers' Starting Rotation: Who’s a lock and who’s fighting for a spot?

After an injury-riddled 2024 season (that also featured some departures via trade) in which they had to rely on "pitching chaos" to carry them all the way to the American League Division Series, the Detroit Tigers now find themselves in a very different position heading into 2025.

At one point in the second half of last season, the Tigers only had one true starting pitcher in their rotation: AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal. Now, even with free agent signing Alex Cobb ruled out for Opening Day with a hip injury, they appear to have an embarrassment of riches on their pitching staff.

At this point, we know the Tigers have three starters locked in: Skubal, Jack Flaherty and Reese Olson. The injury to Cobb theoretically leaves two rotation spots for the taking – and four possible candidates to fill them.

Breaking Down Tigers' Starting Rotation: Who’s still fighting for a spot?

Jackson Jobe

The Tigers' top pitching prospect, Jackson Jobe, is the most obvious candidate to fill one of the open spots on their rotation – if he isn't considered a lock already. He's had a dominant spring that has left little, if any, question that he's MLB-ready, but he hasn't yet experienced the workload of a full Major League season. The Tigers will likely want to preserve Jobe's long-term health and effectiveness, so they may opt to take the route the Pittsburgh Pirates did with reigning National League Rookie of the Year Paul Skenes last season and manage his innings early so he can be more impactful later in the season and during a potential playoff push.

Kenta Maeda

Kenta Maeda has been an interesting storyline to follow this spring. The 36-year-old veteran entered spring training essentially already written off as a starter after a tough 2024 season that saw him demoted to a bullpen role; but he has had a very impressive spring, allowing three earned runs on six hits, walking one and striking out 16 over 8 2/3 innings of work. Well, that was until Monday, when he surrendered five earned runs in four innings of work. Maeda is also entering the final year of his contract, so he might be more motivated to pitch to earn another payday next season.

Casey Mize

The former No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 MLB Draft, Casey Mize has fallen on hard times of late due to injuries and other setbacks. Entering this spring fully healthy, however, he looks like a new man with a revamped slider and increased velocity. He is showing flashes of the No. 1 starter potential the Tigers saw when they drafted him, and if he can continue to put it all together with consistency this spring, he could be a dark horse candidate to nab Detroit's No. 5 rotation spot on Opening Day.

Keider Montero

Keider Montero made his Major League debut out of necessity last season and showed flashes of potential as a starter, but his performance this spring has suggested he might be better suited for a bullpen role with Detroit. Or, the Tigers may choose to have him open the season with Triple-A Toledo, where he can continue to develop as a starter. Regardless, Montero makes a solid fallback option the Tigers can trust in the event of more injuries to the Major League pitching staff.

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