TORONTO — Tyler Nevin left the Detroit Tigers with no choice.
A spot on the active roster opened up Tuesday night, when starting pitcher Matt Manning fractured a bone in his right foot, and the Tigers reached out to Nevin — who plays third base, first base and left field — rather than promoting a reliever to eat innings out of the bullpen.
That’s because Nevin was raking in Triple-A Toledo. The 25-year-old hit .514 (18-for-35) with four doubles, one triple, one home run, three walks and two strikeouts in nine games for the Mud Hens.
“I feel good,” Nevin said. “I’m sticking with my process, trying to hit the ball hard to all fields and keeping it simple.”
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Nevin, a right-handed hitter, has already played 64 games in the big leagues as a member of the Baltimore Orioles in the 2021-22 seasons, hitting .205 with three homers, 24 walks (11.9% walk rate) and 51 strikeouts (25.3% strikeout rate). The Tigers traded for him on New Year’s Eve.
He played 58 of his 64 games in the 2022 campaign.
The Tigers recalled Nevin from Triple-A Toledo on Wednesday while placing Manning on the 15-day injured list with a right foot fracture. The timetable for his return remains unclear, but since he broke the fifth metatarsal, he could be on the shelf for numerous weeks.
The Tigers’ offense is in desperate need of improvement, entering Wednesday 29th among the 30 MLB teams in hits per game (6.8) and 29th in runs per game (3.00). The power swings from certain veteran players are nonexistent, too.
Nevin could play a key role in helping the Tigers escape their shortcomings.
And he could establish himself in the big leagues.
“It’s what I want,” Nevin said. “It’s what every kid growing up wants. I’m excited for the opportunity to pave my own way.”
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His exact role should look something like spring training — a little bit of everything. He had a .211 batting average with two homers, zero walks and four strikeouts across seven games in camp, from Feb. 25 through March 6, before suffering a devastating left oblique strain. If that hadn’t happened, Nevin could have secured a spot on the Tigers’ Opening Day roster.
He was firmly ingrained into the competition for a utility player spot on the bench.
“At the beginning stage of the rehab assignment, I treated it like it was spring training,” Nevin said. “I tried to see as many pitches as I could, keep it simple and not get too results oriented, just process oriented. Seeing pitches, hitting the ball right back up the middle if I could. I think that helped getting into it, treat it like those spring training at-bats because I didn’t get too many of them.”
Now that he has returned, the Tigers need to figure out how to divvy the on-field opportunities between Nevin, Ryan Kreidler, Nick Maton, Zach McKinstry and Jonathan Schoop.
There are openings at second base and third base.
“He can hit some righties,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said of Nevin. “He’s been actually a little bit more reverse (splits) than just simply a lefty masher. I look forward to seeing him at a couple of different positions. Quite honestly, I hope he brings the same approach that he’s taken making good decisions at the plate.”
“Maybe some things will settle in down the road,” Nevin said. “For now, it’s just plugging me in wherever it is.”
One position player — possibly McKinstry, a left-handed hitting infielder, or Akil Baddoo, a lefty hitting outfielder — might not be around in the coming days when the Tigers make another roster move before the upcoming three-game series, from Friday through Sunday, against the San Francisco Giants at Comerica Park.
But Nevin will be in town.
He wanted to call his father — Los Angeles Angels manager Phil Nevin — before anyone else to share the big news, but Phil wouldn’t have answered the phone. He was busy managing the Angels to a 2-0 win over the Washington Nationals.
“He usually gets the first call,” Nevin said, “but he was second or third down the line.”
‘We do have a plan in place’
The Tigers plan to activate right-hander Michael Lorenzen from the injured list. He could start Friday against the Giants. Because of Manning’s injury, Joey Wentz seems likely to stay in the starting rotation for the foreseeable future.
Still, Hinch won’t commit to anything.
“We’ll probably have more of an update tomorrow,” Hinch said.
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There could be more roster moves coming, possibly beyond reinstating Lorenzen from the injured list. Right now, the Tigers have 14 position players and 12 pitchers on the active roster.
“We do have a plan in place,” Hinch said. “We’ve got to get the bullpen and all that stuff situation to line guys, but probably better suited to talk later as we get closer to the San Francisco series.”
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold.