3 surprise players who’ve dominated at Tigers spring training

3) Tigers reliever Miguel Diaz is making a name for himself

Tigers fans saw only a snippet of what Miguel Diaz can offer last season. In 3.2 innings of work, Diaz had a 2.45 ERA. It was hardly enough to judge him fairly. The 4.29 ERA he had in 65 minor league innings, on the other hand, was more than enough to dismiss him.

Not so fast. Diaz has 6.1 shutout innings for the Tigers this spring with 12 strikeouts. In a very different looking bullpen than the team had at the start of last season, there’s room for a guy like Diaz to contribute.

Despite a strong spring, Diaz won't be joining the team on Opening Day as he was optioned to the minors. It's a bit of a shame but understandable. He'll get his chance as long as he continues to prove himself later on.

As a non-roster invitee who rejoined the Tigers this offseason on a minor league deal, the odds were stacked against him from the start of spring. The Tigers have some pretty good depth among their non-roster invitees. Veterans Matt Wisler, Trevor Rosenthal, and Chasen Shreve have a chance to contribute at some point this year.

The Tigers will have to make sure that Diaz, or any of these other options, are ready. None have minor league options. Fortunately, the Tigers have a very open bullpen with plenty of room to give a veteran like Diaz a shot at some point.