Tigers' offseason Justyn-Henry Malloy trade is looking worse by the day as depth thins

The Detroit Tigers are hurting right now in more ways than one. At 16-16, last year's hot start seems like a distant memory, while the second-half collapse seems to hold even more weight in the midst of this early-season malaise. Then there's the ever-growing IL contingent that is literally hurting.

That list of walking-wounded Tigers grew with Javier Baez and Casey Mize now hitting the IL and being replaced by the most uninspiring options possible. At this point, it's fair that quality options are dwindling, but then again, we've also seen Detroit give away quality depth for nothing over the offseason.

The Tigers traded Justyn-Henry Malloy to the Tampa Bay Rays in January. All they got back was cash considerations. While Malloy is no star, he proved to be a somewhat valuable piece last season, and one who would've been nice to be able to turn to during trying times like now.

The Tigers should be kicking themselves for giving up on a young player with potential in Justyn-Henry Malloy

Detroit doesn't give up on young players with potential very often, even when it becomes abundantly clear that the potential is wholly theoretical. See Parker Meadows, Trey Sweeney, and Jace Jung as current examples.

Yet when it came to Malloy, Scott Harris was eager to sacrifice the 26-year-old to free up a 40-man roster spot. Malloy has a lot of redeeming qualities, but he is no star. With that said, the way the Tigers used him at the big league level wasn't always conducive to maximizing a young player's potential.

The Georgia Tech product has spent 298 games in Triple-A and posted a .276/.417/.467 line with 44 dingers. That's an intriguing combination of patience and power, one that you'd think you'd want to see through.

While he's no defensive wizard, he could fill in the outfield corners plus handle some first base duty. He can torment lefties. He could have been useful.

None of this is to say that Malloy is some sort of savior. More than likely, his ceiling is as something of a platoon bat, and one that possesses a little bit of versatility. Maybe he could've been more, and there's a definite fear that a player-development-focused team like the Rays will coax that out of him.

The frustrating thing here is that Malloy still has options left. There were other ways the Tigers could have maneuvered that would have spared him, but they chose not to. Now, they might be desperate enough to wish that they had him. It's too bad. The one time they cut bait relatively quickly on a once-promising youngster is the time that it comes back to bite them.

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