The Tigers have signed left-hander Matt Gage to a minor league cope with an invitation to large league Spring Coaching, per a report from Jon Heyman of The New York Publish. In line with Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press, Gage will obtain an $800K wage within the majors as a part of the deal.
Gage, 32 in February, didn’t pitch within the majors in any respect in 2024 after making transient appearances within the large leagues in every of the previous two seasons. The lefty was a Tenth-round decide by the Giants again in 2014 however didn’t make his large league debut till his age-29 season with Toronto. He pitched 13 innings with the membership however was claimed off waivers by the Astros previous to the 2023 season. He made simply 5 appearances for the membership earlier than as soon as once more being subjected to the waiver wire again in January.
After being placed on waivers by Houston, Gage discovered himself driving the transaction carousel all through the remainder of the yr. The lefty was claimed off waivers by the Yankees in January earlier than traded to the Dodgers in trade for Caleb Ferguson in February. He was then launched by the Dodgers in April earlier than being promptly re-signed to a minor league deal that allowed him to stay within the group with out taking on a 40-man roster spot. He was chosen again onto the roster in July however was traded to the Mets simply days later earlier than being outrighted off the roster in New York again in November.
Amid all these transactions, Gage by no means as soon as made it to the massive league mound regardless of having his contract chosen by each the Dodgers and Mets. With that being mentioned, he sports activities a wonderful 1.83 ERA and a stable 3.97 FIP in 19 2/3 innings of labor on the large league degree from his time in Toronto and Houston. He adopted that up with respectable sufficient numbers at Triple-A for the Dodgers and Mets, combining for a 4.10 ERA and a 28.3% strikeout fee in 41 2/3 innings of labor with the golf equipment’ associates in Oklahoma Metropolis and Syracuse. Clearly, Gage’s profile was intriguing sufficient for the Tigers to roll the cube on him this winter with a non-roster pact.
It’s been a comparatively quiet offseason in Detroit after the membership’s shock run to the ALDS within the fall, and the addition of a depth piece for the bullpen received’t precisely transfer the needle for followers. With that being mentioned, Gage does provide a lefty aid possibility behind Brant Hurter, Tyler Holton, and Sean Guenther for a Tigers membership that relied on its left-handed relievers for extra innings than every other MLB membership final yr, with 261 2/3 of its 694 bullpen innings thrown by left-handers.
