The Detroit Tigers have completed a trade of one of their relief pitchers who they recently designated for assignment.
As first reported by Robert Murray of FanSided, Detroit has sent away right-hander Dylan Smith to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for cash considerations. The Tigers surprisingly DFA’d Smith right before the season began after he did not make roster cutdowns.
A trade or waiver claim was always the most likely result, given that Smith has shown some promise and velocity during his short big league career, and him ending up in the National League is the most ideal result.
Tigers Sending Smith Away to Giants Works Out for Both Sides
Detroit Tigers pitcher Dylan Smith | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Smith threw 13 big league innings last year and in that small sample size posted a 1.38 ERA and 0.846 WHIP, though there was not a whole lot of swing and miss. With 57 strikeouts in 39.2 minor league innings last year, though, he has done some encouraging things.
Him making or not making the roster was always going to come down to the wire for Detroit, and as it turns out, Smith just barely missed the cut. While he was a top-30 prospect in the Tigers system, Smith will turn 26 in May and ultimately just has not done enough yet.
Without a doubt though, fans in Detroit will be watching his career with great interest to see if the Tigers made the right call in dealing him away. If he performs well for San Francisco, many will question this decision from Scott Harris.