The MLB offseason has been well underway for over a month as free agency started just hours after the conclusion of the World Series. Even though some moves have been made and a few players have been shuffled around, the bulk of free agents will be locked down as the MLB winter meetings begin next week in Orlando.
The Winter Meetings is the biggest event of the offseason. Everyone in baseball will be there and events include the Rule 5 Draft and Draft Lottery. General managers can negotiate face-to-face with each other and with player agents. Major League Baseball is taking over Orlando for nearly a week.
The Detroit Tigers had plenty of holes that emerged in both the second half of the season and then in the playoffs which management will be trying to take care of before opening day in 2026. Those include a veteran hitter, starting rotation depth and at least one more arm in the bulllpen.
Winter Meetings for Tigers
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Now the Tigers are one organization that should be prepared to bulk up their roster, but at least they have patched up some areas that needed addressing which started with a pair of their own rejoining the team for 2026.
Starter Jack Flaherty accepted his player option which was followed by second baseman Gleyber Torres taking up the Tigers’ qualifying offer. Before Friday, those were the only significant offseeason moves for the Tigers.
It seems that Tarik Skubal has hinted that he will not be on the market for trade, lessening the organization’s headache for the starting rotation. But another arm would be a nice complement to Skubal, Casey Mize and Jack Flaherty.
Yes, management did just sign Drew Anderson to a one-year deal. But they are banking on him looking like the sub-3.00 ERA pitcher he showed himself to be in the KBO overseas in 2025 and not the 6.00+ ERA pitcher when he pitched in the Majors.
The rotation isn’t the only concern for the pitching staff. The bullpen is an issue, especially if the Tigers are unable to lock down Kyle Finnegan. If not for Finnegan, the bullpen would have been the demise of the team in 2025.
The ballclubs that are serious about contending for a title next year will have to be aggressive in the days to come. The Tigers do not want to have the same ending they have had in back-to-back postseasons, which was an exit in the AL Division Series. The time is now to fix those issues for 2026.
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