The Tigers have re-signed right-hander Wilmer Flores and infielder/outfielder Eddys Leonard to minor league offers, experiences Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press. Flores will make $1MM if he’s within the majors whereas Leonard would get the $760K league minimal.
Neither participant has any main league expertise however each had been on the Tigers’ 40-man roster till not too long ago. Each of them suffered by way of injury-marred seasons this yr earlier than being non-tendered by the Tigers final month. That despatched each to free company with out being uncovered to waivers however every has now returned in a non-roster capability.
Flores, to not be confused with his older brother of the identical title, is a right-handed pitcher who turns 24 in February. He posted some robust numbers as a beginning pitcher as he climbed the minor league ladder and acquired added to the 40-man roster a yr in the past to forestall him from being chosen within the Rule 5 draft. That was even though he struggled late within the 2023 season as his velocity dipped.
He was moved right into a main aid position in 2024 however didn’t take to it instantly. As famous by Petzold, he missed over three months as a consequence of a shoulder harm and the numbers weren’t fairly when he was on the mound. He tossed 25 1/3 innings on the Triple-A stage, permitting 8.53 earned runs per 9. His 18% strikeout price was subpar and his 18.8% stroll price disastrous.
For Leonard, he was as soon as a Dodger prospect, getting added to that membership’s roster forward of the 2021 Rule 5 draft. He was designated for task in the summertime of 2023 and flipped to the Tigers for money. Per Petzold, a left indirect pressure put him to the IL early within the yr, adopted by a proper hamstring pressure in a while. He solely acquired into 67 Triple-A video games and hit .263/.326/.455, which amounted to a 101 wRC+. He exhausted his ultimate possibility yr within the course of.
The Tigers weren’t keen to maintain both participant on the roster after they struggled in 2024, however they nonetheless like each of them sufficient to convey them again and see if issues can get again on monitor in 2025. Flores offers the pitching employees some non-roster depth whereas Leonard does the identical for many of the remainder of the roster. He has expertise in any respect three outfield spots and the three infield positions to the left of first base.
