Tigers folk hero hits Injured List yet again as Detroit recalls familiar face

The Detroit Tigers have lost a fan favorite to one of the game's most finicky injuries, as Matt Vierling has been placed on the Injured List yet again (while a hobbled Wenceel Perez has avoided the shelf for the time being).

It's an oblique issue for Vierling, who will now have to sit and wait for one of baseball's most easily aggravated injuries to resolve itself, less than two months before the start of the MLB postseason. Vierling's return trajectory will depend on the severity of the issue and the care with which the team treats his rehab; basic swing mechanics can aggravate an oblique easily.

This is not the first time this season that Vierling has been shelved (to say the least). He opened the campaign on the IL with a right shoulder strain, returning on May 23. He then was placed on the IL once more on May 27, a cruel tease for Tigers fans who'd been eagerly awaiting the return of the valuable utility standout (who'd hit 16 bombs last season). It was a shoulder issue once again, and he did not return until late June.

Now, he's battling a nebulous oblique problem (as well as a ticking clock). It'll be Trey Sweeney taking his place, who started during last year's Tigers postseason run, but became an undeniable problem as 2025 dragged on.

Detroit Tigers lose Matt Vierling to Injured List, recall Trey Sweeney

At least Sweeney will be returning to the Tigers on good terms; in his last 12 games, he's hitting .326 with a pair of homers.

Still, the Tigers would love to have Peak Vierling back permanently as they fight through the stretch run. Even crueler, they got a brief taste of his talents with a go-ahead three-run home run on Friday night that helped the City Connected Tigers briefly stop the bleeding.

Now, the Tigers will instead need Sweeney to be at least as temporarily brilliant as he was last fall - and Perez healing without needing time away from the team would help stabilize things as well. After finishing up with the Angels Sunday, Detroit will take on the White Sox in Chicago without an off day to decompress.