6 Detroit Tigers players who won't survive the trade deadline

The Detroit Tigers roster will change dramatically at the trade deadline

Detroit Tigers v Colorado Rockies
Detroit Tigers v Colorado Rockies / Dustin Bradford/GettyImages
1 of 6
Next

The Detroit Tigers roster is about to change in a big way at the trade deadline

The Detroit Tigers are likely to sell at the trade deadline. They have a few players that other teams could be interested in. There are also some players who won't be traded that are on thin ice on this roster.

The trade deadline represents the point in the season where teams decide whether they want to be contenders. That obviously means players get traded, but it also means that teams start giving some youngers players a chance. We saw this last year with the Tigers when they called up Kerry Carpenter, and he's become one of their best hitters.

We could seem something very similar this year with players like Parker Meadows, Justyn-Henry Malloy (health permitting), and even Colt Keith. This means more veteran players would get the boot.

Today, we're going to go over six Detroit Tigers players that won't survive the trade deadline. There will be three players who will likely be traded, and three that will be off the roster in another fashion, whether they're DFA'd or otherwise. Let's get started.

SP Eduardo Rodriguez

We won't spend too much time on this one, since E-rod is by far the Tigers most valuable trade piece and we did a trade proposals article on him last week. But he is almost assuredly gone.

E-rod will have plenty of suitors. He is on a potentially expiring contract, depending on if he opts out, which seems likely given how well he's pitched this season.

He pitched seven innings of two-run ball Wednesday night in Kansas City to give him an ERA of 2.69 on the year. He's walked less than two batters per nine innings now on the year. He's a strike-throwing machine.

The Tigers could get a nice return for E-rod if Scott Harris plays his cards right.

SP Michael Lorenzen

Lorenzen is getting a bit more buzz right now because he'll be easier to acquire. He'd be a rental, so he wouldn't cost too much. Plus, he doesn't necessarily have to be a starter because of his bullpen experience.

There are other reasons besides his pitching ability that could make him attractive to other teams. He's a veteran, so he could beneificial to an up-and-coming team like the Reds or Orioles. He's also a great clubhouse guy, and that's more valuable than you think.

Lorenzen is a solid back-of-the-rotation starter, and contending teams always need arms. He could help somebody out.

RP Jose Cisnero

Out of all the Detroit Tigers relievers, Cisnero is the most likely to be dealt. He's 34 on an expiring contract, and contenders are always looking for bullpen arms.

After getting off to a rocky start this season, Cisnero looks like his old self again. His ERA is down to 3.25 and his K/9 is up to 10. His stuff has life again. This is the Cisnero we saw in 2021.

He would make a great middle relief option for a contender. The return for him wouldn't be anything to write home about, but it's better to trade him now than to let him walk for nothing.

The Tigers have some interesting arms that could replace him, especially now with the return of Beau Brieske. Trey Wingenter would likely come up in the event of a Cisnero trade.

INF Zack Short

Now we get into players who would will likely lose their roster spots, but won't get traded. We start with Zack Short, who, after a nice start, has cooled off significantly.

Over his last 50 plate appearances, Short is batting .064 with an OPS of .205. Going back to June 1, it doesn't get much better. He's hit just .146 with a .420 OPS. He doesn't play a whole lot, but he's been struggling mightily.

He plays good defense at second base, so he has value there, but he's provided virtually nothing offensively over the last month and a half. His time on the roster could be coming to an end.

Short plays good defense and is a good guy to have in the clubhouse, but he's just not a quality major leaguer.

INF Nick Maton

Maton recently returned after being optioned to Triple-A at the end of June. He did have a .943 OPS in Toledo, but it was over an 11-game sample. It's hard to believe he figured something out in two weeks.

Despite hitting a home run in his first game back, Maton has looked pretty much the exact same as he did before he was sent down. He has a new batting stance, as he holds the bat closer to his body and has ditched the leg kick, but it hasn't helped much so far.

He's made a few nice plays on defense, which is a welcome sight, but we just haven't seen that Wolfie magic we saw the first couple weeks of the season. He still can't hit breaking balls.

After the trade deadline, he really should spend the rest of the year in Toledo. There are younger players down there who deserve a shot.

C/OF Eric Haase

This one hurts. Haase has been one of my personal favorite players the last couple of years because he actually had some pop in his bat. His 2021 rookie campaign in which he slugged 22 homers was a sight to behold. However, those days appear to be over.

Haase has been a shell of his former self this season. He's hitting .202 with a .532 OPS and no power. He has a WAR of -1.0 on the year.

He got off to a slow start last year as well, but picked things up in mid-June and was arguably the team's most consistent hitter the rest of the season, but that hasn't happened this year.

He's never played good defense, whether he's catching or playing the outfield, but you could always justify his poor defense because of the value he provided with his bat. Now that he's not hitting, it's hard to justify his spot on the roster.

Haase is a local guy and his well-respected in the clubhouse, but his days appear to be numbered. The backup catcher options in Toledo are not very good, but they can't be worse than Eric Haase right now.

Detroit Tigers and the curious case of Kerry Carpenter. dark. Next. Detroit Tigers and the curious case of Kerry Carpenter

Next