Weird Dodgers-Tigers pipeline sees former Detroit player join LA's active roster

Former Detroit Tigers infielder Buddy Kennedy has had a rollercoaster of a path through MLB, and he's just 26 years old.

Kennedy was drafted by the Diamondbacks in 2017 and debuted with them in 2022. The Snakes designated him for assignment the following season, and he was claimed off waivers and quickly designated for assignment by the A's and Cardinals before making his way to Detroit in 2024. To accommodate Kennedy on their roster, the Tigers DFA'd infielder Andre Lipcius before trading him to the Dodgers.

Kennedy posted just six big league games with the Tigers before he was DFA'd and then traded to the Phillies. He stuck with them through parts of two seasons before he signed a minor league deal with the Blue Jays in July. Just over a month later, he was DFA'd again and claimed by the Dodgers off waivers. He was swiftly added to the active roster in LA after Max Muncy went down with an injury on Friday.

Lipcius is no longer with Los Angeles after he was DFA'd in March 2024, so Kennedy won't join him there. But it's quite funny that the Dodgers swapped one Tigers roster casualty for another, especially since one of them is Lipcius. The Tigers selected the infielder in the third round of the 2019 MLB Draft and thought so highly of him that they added him to the 40-man roster to protect him ahead of the 2022 Rule 5 Draft. Clearly, he didn't work out for Detroit.

Dodgers pick up former Tiger Buddy Kennedy, who took Andre Lipcius' place on their roster before he was dealt to LA

Kennedy, Lipicus' roster replacement, collected two hits and two runs in his brief tenure with the Tigers. He didn't fare much better with Triple-A Toledo, with a .234/.331/.383 slash line over 39 games. Detroit manager AJ Hinch told reporters that he liked Kennedy for his defense — he can slot in at four infield spots and left field, with the vast majority of his minor league innings coming at third base.

Kennedy may fit in at the hot corner with the Dodgers. They listed him as a first baseman, but picked him up on the same day Muncy was placed on the injured list with an oblique injury. LA expects to be without Muncy for weeks, and extra third base depth can't hurt in his absence. But if Kennedy's history is any indication, he may not be long for the Dodgers' roster.