Detroit Tigers: Michael Lorenzen's first start not a cause for concern

Detroit Tigers, Michael Lorenzen will iron things out.

The Detroit Tigers finally saw Michael Lorenzen make his first start of the 2023 campaign. A nagging groin injury kept him off the mound at the end of Spring Training, and it took him some time to recover and get things back on track, get and get back to 100%.

However, the Detroit Tigers were able to activate Lorenzen to start against the San Francisco Giants. He made his 2023 season debut, getting the chance to start for the Tigers after being signed this off-season.

Needless to say, it was not the best outing from the right-handed pitcher. Lorenzen would go on to pitch four innings against the Giants, and it was not pretty. He allowed eight hits, walked two, and saw six runs come across to score.

However, Lorenzen did manage six punchouts. But overall, not a good outing, not one that he will want to look back on. But it's a long season, and Lorenzen should be able to get things back on track; after all, it was his first start of the campaign.

He's been getting in bullpens and going through live outings with rehab starts mixed in, but it was his first true start of the 2023 season, jumping on the mound against the Giants. The results were rough, but the Tigers should not be panicking yet.

Lorenzen was not always a starter. He was doing just fine in the Cincinnati Reds bullpen before the Los Angeles Angels converted him into a starter. This is something he did in 2022, pitching in 18 starts for the Angels while managing a 4.24 ERA and 1.28 WHIP during that span.

After one start in 2023, it is not time to worry. He's still getting back into the game as a starting pitcher and deserves a chance to get settled in and find ways to be effective. He has a chance to stick with the rotation and worst-case scenario, he jumps back into the bullpen and tries to lock down a bullpen role.

If the bad starts continue to mount, then maybe it's time to make a move to the bullpen; after all, things are not going super well there either. Getting someone who has been solid in the bullpen in the past (Lorenzen) might help them.

But the Tigers should not be worrying just yet. Lorenzen deserves a few starts to go out there and get things going how they should before the warning sirens are going off. The first start of the year was horrible, but it's not time to panic yet.