Tigers calling up former division rival after 3-year hiatus could save pitching staff

The Tigers quietly signed 34-year-old veteran pitcher (and Central Michigan University grad) Dietrich Enns to a minor league contract in early January, marking a potential return to the majors for the first time since 2021. Enns got the ball a few times in spring training, pitching nine innings for a 3.00 ERA, but he was kept in the minors to start the season.

On Tuesday, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reported that the Tigers would be calling him up for his team debut during Thursday's series finale against the Athletics. Enns isn't on the 40-man, so a DFA could be on the horizon.

Enns has looked great in Triple-A so far this season, pitching 62 1/3 innings (14 starts) for a 2.89 ERA. It's unclear how the Tigers will use him given that he has both starting and relief experience, but he could easily slot into Keider Montero's recently vacated spot as a hybrid arm.

If he becomes a pseudo-starter, it's likely that his time in the rotation will be short, as Reese Olson is rehabbing in Triple-A and appears to be on the cusp of a return. But it's an opportunity for Enns to stake a claim on the spot in the bullpen — maybe as a super reliever in the vein of Tyler Holton.

Tigers to call up former Twins, Rays pitcher Dietrich Enns after three-year MLB hiatus

Enns started out with the Yankees, going in the 19th round of the 2012 draft, but he had to wait for his major league debut until August 2017 with the Twins. He only pitched four innings for them (for a 6.75 ERA) before being sent down again and declaring free agency at the end of the season.

He bounced between three organizations from 2019-2021 — the Padres, Mariners, and Rays — and didn't resurface in the majors until August 2021 in Tampa. He actually did some pretty decent work for them down the stretch (22 1/3 innings, 2.82 ERA), but the team released him at the end of the season, and he spent 2022-2024 in Japan and Korea as a member of the Saitama Seibu Lions and LG Twins (the same team that new Tigers minor league signing Woo-Suk Go closed for from 2017-2023).

Enns' early performance in Triple-A is promising, and if he works out he could be the perfect solution to give the Tigers' bullpen a little bit of rest.