Right-handed reliever Dugan Darnell – a Michigan native who graduated from Northville High School and Adrian College – is set to enter the 2026 season with the Detroit Tigers.
The Tigers re-signed Darnell on Dec. 15 to a minor-league contract.
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The deal includes a non-roster invitation to MLB spring training and pays $781,500 if he makes the MLB roster, according to a person with knowledge of the agreement.
The 28-year-old isn’t expected to pitch in games until around May 2026 after undergoing left hip surgery. He made his MLB debut with the Colorado Rockies in August 2025.
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Colorado Rockies pitcher Dugan Darnell (52) pitches in the sixth inning of the game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and Colorado Rockies at Chase Field in Phoenix on Aug. 9, 2025.
In 2025, Darnell posted a 3.86 ERA with seven walks and five strikeouts across 11⅔ innings in nine relief appearances for the Rockies. For his first MLB strikeout, he struck out Jared Triolo of the Pittsburgh Pirates swinging on a 94.9 mph fastball.
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He also registered a 3.19 ERA with 19 walks and 63 strikeouts over 53⅔ innings in 35 games for Triple-A Albuquerque, recording more than three outs in 24 of those 35 outings.
The hip surgery took place Sept. 23.
The procedure called for an estimated recovery of eight months.
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Before the injury, Darnell threw three pitch types in the big leagues: 52.7% fastballs, 26.9% splitters and 20.4% sliders.
The fastball averaged 93.7 mph, limiting both contact and damage. The splitter and slider generated an abundance of whiffs at the Triple-A level, but at the MLB level, hitters weren’t fooled by either of his secondary offerings, though the splitter suppressed damage.
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The Tigers claimed Darnell off waivers Nov. 12 from the Pirates. He was designated for assignment Nov. 18 to open a spot on the 40-man roster and non-tendered Nov. 21, sending him into into free agency.
It didn’t take long for him to re-sign with the Tigers.
He has all three minor-league options remaining, so the Tigers can shuffle him freely between Triple-A and the majors in 2026, 2027 and 2028 if he returns to the 40-man roster, though players can’t be sent down to the minors more than five times per season.
Before Darnell made his MLB debut in 2025, only three other players from Adrian College had made the majors: third baseman Ryan Dorow in 2021, right-hander Clint Rogge in 1915 and 1921 and right-hander Rube Kisinger from 1902-03.
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He graduated from Adrian in 2019, but he didn’t sign with the Rockies until 2021, after two seasons with the Eastside Diamond Hoppers of the United Shore Professional Baseball League (located in Utica).
In 2026, Darnell could become the first Adrian product since Kisinger to play for the Tigers.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers re-sign Michigan native Dugan Darnell to minor leagues