Jack Flaherty's biggest problem with the Tigers couldn't be more obvious after 5 starts

Taking a glance at Jack Flaherty's numbers through his first five starts this season, one wouldn't think twice. He sports a 3.47 ERA and strikes out over 22% of the hitters he faces. The problem, however, is that he's a ticking time bomb — and it was none more apparent than his start against the Boston Red Sox on Monday.

The 30-year-old veteran didn't make it out of the fourth inning of Monday's loss to the Red Sox, walking 6 of the 20 batters he faced.

Flaherty has an alarming lack of command through his first five starts this season, and it speaks to the concern within his underlying metrics. He's been getting lucky this season, considering his xERA is 4.75, and his xFIP is 5.74.

It's a reversal of his production from last season, when he posted a 4.64 ERA, but his xERA was 3.97, and his xFIP was 3.69. With the arrivals of Framber Valdez and Justin Verlander, there was hope that Flaherty, if nothing else, could provide stability in the middle of the Tigers' rotation. That need is a little more dire as the Tigers are still waiting for the return of Verlander.

Unfortunately, stability isn't quite what Flaherty has provided. He's been able to make it through five innings of work in three of his five starts this season, and it's largely due to the struggles he's had with his command.

Jack Flaherty's command has gone out the window in 2026

To put it simply, if Flaherty improves his command, his underlying metrics are going to improve. There's reason to believe there will be a progression to the mean. For his career, Flaherty has walked 8.8% of the hitters he faced. Currently, this season, that number has jumped to 18.5%.

There's reason to believe that Flaherty is struggling with his fastball to open the 2026 season, and that is what is contributing to his command issues this season. After having a value of 5.1 runs above average last season (the higher number is better for pitchers), his fastball has a value of -0.3 runs below average through his first handful of starts this year. Throughout his career, Flaherty's fastball has been his most valuable pitch.

Flaherty wasn't great last season, but if there's a silver lining to his command issues this season, it's that it's uncharacteristic for him. It starts with his fastball, and if he's able to turn that back into his primary pitch, it would be an encouraging sign for him becoming the veteran presence that the Tigers need in the middle of their rotation.

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