Even with Jack Flaherty (unfortunately) picking up his player option for the 2026 season, the Detroit Tigers could stand to upgrade their starting rotation this offseason. The Tigers don’t just need to not entertain the idea of trading Tarik Skubal this offseason; they need to add another arm next to him, capable of starting a playoff game.
Unfortunately, for a team like the Tigers, this hasn’t been an ideal offseason. The St. Louis Cardinals fleeced the Boston Red Sox while sending them starting pitcher Sonny Gray, and Dyan Cease’s $200+ million deal with the Toronto Blue Jays is just another reminder of what the Tigers refuse to do in free agency.
The Tigers may need to get creative with how they address their need in the rotation, and Cease’s deal could even push someone like Michael King out of their price range. One pitcher who might be within Detroit’s reach this winter is former Arizona Diamondbacks ace Zac Gallen.
Zac Gallen could be an ideal free-agent target for the Detroit Tigers ahead of the Winter Meetings.
The Athletic’s Jim Bowden set the stage for the Winter Meetings next week, suggesting that Scott Boras will be the star of the show. Boras represents a handful of the top names in the free agent market, but is also seeking a deal for Gallen. While mentioning Gallen, Bowden did list the Tigers as a team that could offer a change of scenery.
A three-time Cy Young candidate in previous seasons, Gallen struggled considerably during his final year with the Diamondbacks. Gallen did approach 200 innings pitched, but posted a 4.83 ERA while striking out 21.5% of the hitters he faced. For reference, for his career, Gallen has a strikeout rate of 25.6%.
Glancing through Gallen’s metrics last season, and the initial impression is that his cutter, sinker, and slider lost effectiveness. It essentially turned Gallen into a two-pitch pitcher who wasn’t missing bats with the frequency he was in the past, leading to hitters squaring him up more often. Of course, it will be up to the Tigers (or a different team) to fix that, but it might be worth the gamble.
As long as trading Skubal is even in the conversation for the Tigers, it’s hard to see them making a splash for an established ace to join the rotation. But a buy-low candidate like Gallen could actually be an under-the-radar move that saves the offseason.