Best thing for Detroit Tigers, Tarik Skubal? Jim Duquette explains
On “Days of Roar,” former general manager Jim Duquette explains what the Detroit Tigers should do with Tarik Skubal in the 2025-26 MLB offseason.
The Detroit Tigers added five prospects to their 40-man roster Tuesday, Nov. 18, before the 6 p.m. deadline to protect eligible players from being selected in the 2025 Rule 5 Draft.
The five prospects protected: utility player Trei Cruz, second baseman/third baseman Hao-Yu Lee, left-hander Jake Miller, catcher Thayron Liranzo and catcher/first baseman Eduardo Valencia.
The Rule 5 draft is scheduled for Dec. 10 at MLB’s Winter Meetings. The notable players left unprotected by the Tigers include right-hander Max Alba, right-handed relievers RJ Petit and Matt Seelinger and right-hander Troy Watson.
In the Rule 5 draft, teams can select unprotected draft-eligible players for $100,000. A selected player must stay on the 26-man roster (or the injured list) for the entire 2026 season. If removed from the roster, the player will be placed on waivers, then offered back to the original team for $50,000.
The Tigers created space on the 40-man roster for the five prospects (and second baseman Gleyber Torres accepting the one-year, $22.025 million qualifying offer) by cutting six players: right-handers Dugan Darnell, Jason Foley, Jack Little, Tyler Mattison and Tanner Rainey and left-hander Sean Guenther were designated for assignment.
The Tigers’ 40-man roster is now at 40 players.
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Hao-Yu Lee, Thayron Liranzo
Two players – Lee and Liranzo – headlined the five Tigers prospects added to the 40-man roster.
Lee is projected to make his MLB debut in 2026. Liranzo isn’t expected to do so until 2027. Liranzo ranks No. 5 and Lee ranks No. 6 among the top-30 prospects in the Tigers’ farm system, according to MLB Pipeline.
Of the two, Liranzo is more likely to become an everyday player in the big leagues.
Liranzo, 22, hit .206 with 11 home runs, 47 walks (11.9% walk rate) and 125 strikeouts (31.7% strikeout rate) across 88 games, spending all of 2025 in Double-A Erie. He spent 45 games at catcher and 43 games at designated hitter.
Lee, 22, hit .243 with 14 home runs, 65 walks (11.2% walk rate) and 121 strikeouts (20.9% strikeout rate) across 126 games, spending all of 2025 in Triple-A Toledo. He played 60 games at third base, 54 games at second base and 12 games at designated hitter.
Both players have flaws on offense.
Lee, a right-handed hitter, struggles against right-handed pitchers, hitting .228 with a .702 OPS, compared to .299 with a .919 OPS against lefties; Liranzo, a switch-hitter, showcases power from both sides of the plate, but must cut down strikeouts.
The duo joined the Tigers at the trade deadline in back-to-back seasons.
The Tigers acquired Lee from the Philadelphia Phillies in the 2023 Michael Lorenzen trade, then Liranzo from the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 2024 Jack Flaherty trade.
Trei Cruz, Jake Miller, Eduardo Valencia
Of the three other players added to the 40-man roster, only Miller is ranked among the Tigers’ top-30 prospects at No. 19.
Miller, 24, posted a 2.12 ERA with four walks and 16 strikeouts across 17 innings in four starts for Erie. He also made two starts for Low-A Lakeland during a rehab assignment. A back injury limited the lefty to those six starts in the 2025 season, but he is expected to be healthy for spring training.
His changeup is his best pitch, missing bats against right-handed and left-handed hitters. He pairs the above-average changeup with a 93 mph fastball and two variations of a slider.
The Tigers selected Miller in the eighth round of the 2022 draft from Valparaiso.
Cruz, 27, hit .279 with 13 home runs, 102 walks and 121 strikeouts in 127 games for Erie (69 games) and Toledo (58 games), including a .284 batting average with an .881 OPS for the Mud Hens.
He is a switch-hitter who primarily plays shortstop and center field, which is valuable, but he also has experience at third base, second base, left field and right field.
The Tigers selected Cruz in the third round of the 2020 draft from Rice.
Valencia, 25, hit .311 with 24 home runs, 43 walks and 86 strikeouts in 103 games for Erie (53 games) and Toledo (50 games), including a .319 batting average with a 1.026 OPS for the Mud Hens.
A right-handed hitter, he played 40 games at first base, 39 at catcher and 25 at designated hitter, spending more time at first base than catcher at Triple-A. He is a below-average defender in all categories except framing.
Valencia was signed by the Tigers in 2018 as an international free agent from Venezuela.
Tigers’ Rule 5 draft candidates
Here’s the full list of 2025 Rule 5 draft-eligible players from the Tigers’ organization:
Right-handed pitchers (17):Â Max Alba, Garrett Burhenn, Rayner Castillo, Ronny Chalas, Haden Erbe, Colin Fields, Marco Jimenez, Tanner Kohlhepp, Carlos Marcano, Jordan Marks, Trevin Michael, Joseph Montalvo, RJ Petit, Yosber Sanchez, Matt Seelinger, Eric Silva, Troy Watson.
Left-handed pitchers (4):Â Joe Adametz, Lael Lockhart, Joe Miller, Gabriel Reyes.
Catchers (2):Â Ricardo Hurtado, Sergio Tapia.
Infielders (7): Abel Bastidas, Peyton Graham, Andrew Jenkins, Izaac Pacheco, Cristian Santana, Danny Serretti, Gage Workman.
Outfielders (7): Justice Bigbie, Daniel Cabrera, Roberto Campos, Ben Malgeri, Chris Meyers, Austin Murr, Seth Stephenson.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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