Detroit — If you can’t beat him, claim him off waivers.
That’s what the Tigers have done, claiming left-handed starting pitcher Zach Logue off waivers from the Oakland Athletics on Friday.
Logue’s two best starts last season, his rookie season, were against the Tigers. He pitched seven scoreless innings with six strikeouts at Comerica Park and then allowed two runs in six innings against Detroit in Oakland on July 21.
The rest of his year didn’t go as well, though his numbers were inflated by a disastrous relief outing on Sept. 8, when he was tagged for 10 hits and eight runs by the White Sox in three innings. He finished an ERA over 6 in his 10 big-league starts and an ERA over 8 in his 17 Triple-A starts.
Logue will be 27 in April and features a four-pitch mix — four-seam fastball (90 mph), cutter (86 mph), curveball and changeup. He didn’t generate much swing-and-miss (21.5%) or chase (26.5%) and had a 42.5% hard-hit rate.
Presumably, Logue will join a growing group of younger starters competing for one of the final rotation spots in the spring. Eduardo Rodriguez, Michael Lorenzen, Matthew Boyd, Spencer Turnbull and Matt Manning comprise the rotation heading into camp.
Lefties Joey Wentz, Tyler Alexander and Logue, along with right-handers Beau Brieske, Reese Olson, Alex Faedo, Rony Garcia, Garrett Hill and Rule-5 pick Mason Englert could all be competing to crack the top five.
To clear a spot for Logue on the 40-man roster, right-handed reliever Angel De Jesus was designated for assignment. De Jesus, who will be 26 in February, pitched in eight games covering 12.2 innings for the Tigers last season, allowing three runs (two home runs).
Earlier in the week, the Tigers claimed catcher Mario Feliciano off waivers from Milwaukee. The 24-year-old graduate of the Carlos Beltran Baseball Academy in Puerto Rico is a former second-round pick. He’s played in three big-league games over the last two years for the Brewers.
He played 109 games at Triple-A Nashville in 2021-2022, slashing .256/.304/.367.
Twitter: @cmccosky