Detroit Tigers: Andy Ibañez continues helping fill holes in lineup

Detroit Tigers should be happy with Andy Ibañez's performance.

When the Detroit Tigers made their moves this offseason, they added a few new faces to help round out the lineup. Come August, some of those faces have mattered more than others. One of the players who has stepped up on the offensive side of the ball is Andy Ibañez.

Offensively, Andy Ibañez has been able to step up and plug holes in the Detroit Tigers lineup. It has to be exciting for the Detroit Tigers to see a player like Ibañez come in and settle in, especially in a versatile role as he has.

It may not be super flashy or even something overly amazing statistically, but there is still reason to be excited about what Ibañez has done. He has played in 86 games during the 2023 season, logging 269 at-bats to this point.

He has gone out and produced a .245/.278/.420 slash line with 18 doubles, a triple, and nine home runs. Ibañez has managed 26 RBI with 11 walks and 55 strikeouts. Again, he may not have the most exciting stat line, but he has done a great job settling in and finding his way.

The name of the game for Ibañez has been his versatility and ability to slot in wherever he is needed. For Ibañez, he has logged 51 games at second base. On top of that, 17 games in the outfield between right and left field and 16 games at third base, with a couple of games at first base as well.

The Tigers have been able to plug in Ibañez as needed and move him around the infield and outfield as needed. Having someone like that to fill holes is crucial, and he has certainly been able to do that as the season has gone on.

Ibañez has made the most of his opportunities. He's hit the ball hard and been able to churn out some extra-base hits, which is certainly exciting. He's performed at a 10.3% barrel rate, which is impressive. His HardHit% is up to 43.5%, which is exciting as well.

Seeing Ibañez go out and find the barrel is exciting for the Tigers. Being someone that the team brought in this off-season, he has done an excellent job making the most of his opportunity this season.

The Tigers need to be thrilled with his performance to this point. Beyond that, the Tigers need players like that to help fill roles as a fringe starter. The Tigers need to have versatility on the bench that can be plugged into the lineup whenever they need, so moving forward, having him around on the bench could be crucial.