Important Tigers injury news got lost in the Chris Paddack trade, Reese Olson shuffle

The Detroit Tigers made a surprising trade on Monday to acquire starting pitcher Chris Paddack from the Minnesota Twins – a trade that made a lot more sense a few hours later, when president of baseball operations Scott Harris announced that right-hander Reese Olson would miss the remainder of the regular season with a shoulder strain.

The loss of Olson is a massive one for the Tigers' rotation, and the news of his season-ending injury largely overshadowed another piece of injury news for the Tigers. Center fielder Parker Meadows has also landed on the 10-day injured list with a strained quadriceps – a footnote to the Olson news, but still impactful in its own right.

The Tigers recalled Andy Ibáñez from Triple-A Toledo to take Meadows’ spot on the 26-man roster. They also recalled Ryan Kreidler, who will likely remain with the big league club for just a day or two until Paddack is formally activated ahead of his projected start on Wednesday against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Tigers' Parker Meadows injury news was overshadowed by Chris Paddack trade, Reese Olson

The news of Meadows' injury is significant, as he missed the first two months of the season with a nerve injury in his arm that he suffered in spring training. He’s struggled offensively since his return, hitting .200 with a .566 OPS in 137 plate appearances for the Tigers.

Meadows is primarily known for his outstanding defense in center field, but his bat was showing signs of life down the stretch in 2024 as he hit .299 with an .857 OPS over his final 213 plate appearances last season.

He was expected to be the Tigers’ everyday center fielder in 2025 before suffering his nerve injury, but the job ended up going to Javier Báez – who was voted an All-Star starter at the position despite never having played it before – until Meadows' activation off the IL in early June.

Fortunately, initial scans on Meadows' quad didn't indicate a high-grade strain or tear. Harris told reporters (including Chris McCosky of MLive) that while he is hopeful that Meadows can return to play soon, he can't forecast an exact timeline yet. Either way, Meadows needed some sort of reprieve because of how bad he's been, and this short-term layoff can help the Tigers get their ducks in a row ahead of the trade deadline.

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