Will Vest's struggles explained after Tigers' concerning injury diagnosis

One of the most disappointing developments in a rather disappointing season for the Tigers has been Will Vest turning into a liability. After three solid seasons for Detroit and notching 23 saves with a 3.01 ERA in 2025, he has a 6.08 ERA and five blown saves in 2026.

He blew up as recently as Saturday against the Astros, when he was responsible for yet another blown Tigers lead by giving up three runs in the eighth. He hasn't been back on the mound since.

On Wednesday, the Tigers offered an explanation for that by way of an IL move. Vest was transferred to the 15-day IL with posterior right elbow inflammation, retroactive to June 28 — the day after that appearance against the Astros. Per Chris McCosky of the Detroit Times, the injury doesn't appear to be ligament related. Beau Brieske was called up in his place.

Vest has already spent some time on the IL this season with forearm inflammation from late April into early May. He was struggling before that stint, too, and left the team with a 6.17 ERA before coming back and looking even worse.

Will Vest returns to Tigers IL with elbow inflammation after blowup appearance vs. Astros

Vest's struggles in the eighth inning has become a well-worn talking point with fans, and his performance in the eighth is indeed the reason for his inflated ERA. In 12 2/3 eighth innings, he has a 10.66 ERA versus a 1.29 ERA in seven ninth innings.

There may be no logical explanation for a player's struggles in one inning over another, and we might just have to boil it down to a weird, recurring fluke or a mental thing for Vest. But there's no denying that he's simply not an effective eighth inning arm. The same was true last year, when he posted a 4.76 ERA in 17 eighth innings against a 1.55 ERA in 40 2/3 ninth innings. And that was in an entirely healthy season.

Still, AJ Hinch has continued to send Vest out in the eighth, given Kyle Finnegan and Kenley Jansen's presences on the roster. The three-headed late-innings monster that the Tigers hoped they would be able to rotate through different high-leverage roles has not looked threatening this entire season.

Hopefully, Vest will take this second IL stint as a reset. It still might not fix his confounding eighth inning issues, but it'll at least give him a break in a rough season.

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