Tigers signal return of veteran reliever with roster move following win vs Rockies

The Detroit Tigers defeated the Colorado Rockies in the first game of Thursday's doubleheader by a score of 10-2. And before the evening matchup, they made a roster move that confused some fans, especially those who know how important pitching is. Chase Lee was optioned to Triple-A.

In his place, the Tigers recalled outfielder Brewer Hicklen, who they acquired in a trade with the Milwaukee Brewers in late March. Across 25 games at Triple-A, he's hitting just .242 with a .674 OPS. He's also struck out 34 times.

As for Lee, he didn't surrender a run in his first five MLB games. Heading into Thursday, he tossed 4 1/3 scoreless innings allowing just two hits and three walks. He was far from perfect, but he's shown an ability to deliver multi-inning outings.

Against the Rockies (his sixth game), he finished the final two innings of the Thursday win, allowing one run on one hit (triple, sac fly) and striking out two. So what gives? It's not like they need an additional position player at the moment with how AJ Hinch has been moving guys around.

Tigers option Chase Lee, recall Brewer Hicklen, expect John Brebbia to return

Turns out, veteran right-hander John Brebbia is nearing a return ahead of the team's three-game series against the Rangers on Friday. That means Hicklen will more than likely be sent back down after the conclusion of the second game.

Brebbia, who hit the injured list on April 19 with a triceps strain, began a rebab assignment on May 2 and apparently progressed quickly enough to make it back in a little over two weeks. Before going down, Brebbia was pitching extremely well, logging a 1.00 ERA and 0.89 WHIP while surrendering just three hits over nine innings of work.

Pitching coach Chris Fetter was clearly able to tweak something in his arsenal to help in the early going. Brebbia was awful with the White Sox in 2024 after battling injuries with the Giants in 2023.

The 35-year-old provides an experienced presence in the Tigers' bullpen alongside Tommy Kahnle, and the Tigers are hoping he can perform well enough in 2025 so they can justify exercising his $4 million option for 2026.

Lee will have plenty of opportunities to make an impact and state his case for a bullpen role, so expect him to be back when the bullpen starts to thin out. Brebbia, though, is going to be a more highlighted figure for Detroit because he arguably has more to prove in the short term.