Phillies DFA former Tigers' first-round draft pick Dave Dombrowski tried to revive

Former Detroit Tigers first-round pick Matt Manning was designated for assignment by the Philadelphia Phillies on Friday.

Detroit had just traded Manning to the Phillies at the deadline for minor-league outfielder Josueth Quinonez – an 18-year-old currently playing in the Dominican Summer League – to clear space on their roster for their new pitching acquisitions.

Manning then became a roster casualty for the Phillies when they selected the contract of veteran starter Walker Buehler, whom they had signed to a minor league deal after he was released by the Boston Red Sox at the end of August. Phillies president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski has been trying to improve Philly's pitching staff ahead of the postseason.

Former Tigers first-round pick Matt Manning designated for assignment by Phillies

The Tigers selected Manning, now 27, out of high school with the No. 9 overall pick in the 2016 MLB Draft. He made his Major League debut in 2021 and made a handful of starts over the next three seasons. During his time in Detroit, Manning went 11-15 with a 4.43 ERA in 254 innings over 50 starts, but he was never able to stick at the MLB level.

Manning was in the mix for a spot in the Tigers' 2025 rotation until the final days of spring training, but he ultimately lost out to Reese Olson and Casey Mize. He was optioned to Triple-A Toledo, where he struggled to a 6.04 ERA over 50 2/3 innings before he was traded in what the Phillies probably hoped would be a good buy-low deal.

Manning never made it into a big league game for the Phillies, pitching only briefly for the organization at Double-A Reading before losing his roster spot to Buehler. If Manning clears waivers, the Phillies can keep him in the organization by outrighting him to the minor leagues. But given his pedigree as a former top prospect, it's possible that another team takes a chance on him and plucks him off of the waiver wire.

That said, Manning will be out of minor league options starting next year, which will make it more challenging for him to keep a roster spot going forward. If another team does decide to take a flier on him, though, he will be under team control for four seasons after this one.

Dombrowski tried to make a play on the Tigers' first first-round draft pick after he departed the organization in 2015. Unfortunately for him, one of Detroit's few draft busts couldn't turn it around with his new team.