Tigers claim LHP Bailey Horn off waivers, DFA RHP Wilmer Flores

Bless You Boys

Friday night at 8 p.m. ET was the deadline for MLB teams to tender contract offers to their eligible players and finalize their 40-man rosters in advance of the Rule 5 draft in December. The Tigers made offers to everyone eligible on the roster, and agreed to one-year deals with Andy Ibáñez and Zach McKinstry, avoiding arbitration.

None of that was a surprise, but then the Tigers claimed LHP Bailey Horn off waivers from the Boston Red Sox, and designated RHP Wilmer Flores for assignment to open a 40-man roster spot.

Just two years ago, the 23-year-old Flores was one of the team’s top prospects. The big right-hander burst on the scene after the Tigers signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2020. In 2021 and 2022, the young right-hander moved quickly into the upper levels of the system, showcasing a high power fourseamer with natural ride and cut that occasionally scraped triple digits. Backed with a cutter and a wipeout power curve, it looked like he was only modest gains in command from becoming a quality mid-rotation starter and potentially more, but things stalled in 2023.

Flores command regressed instead and rumors persisted that he and the Tigers weren’t on the same page in terms of his development. The Tigers converted him to a relief role this spring, but shoulder trouble, including an ac joint sprain, left him able to throw just 25 13 innings at Triple-A, and he could not find the strike zone with any consistency. It’s not impossible that Flores returns on a minor league deal, but it’s understandable that the Tigers declined to hold a 40-man roster spot for him.

Instead, they claimed LHP Bailey Horn from the Boston Red Sox. The 26-year-old reliever came up in the Cubs system. He’s never really gotten his strike throwing under control, and the Red Sox acquired him for cash considerations last April. He threw 18 major league innings in his MLB debut, but control remains a big issue for him. He posted a 6.50 ERA with a 7.00 FIP, and the punch outs that decorate his minor league statistics were nowhere to be found.

Horn leads with heavy doses of his 82-83 mph sweeper. He threw 60 percent sweepers with the Red Sox, but compiled just a 20.5 percent whiff rate, which isn’t good for a heavily used breaking ball. His second most used pitch is his riding fourseamer which clocks in with a 95 mph average. It’s a pretty good fastball, though somewhat mediocre extension makes the velocity play down a bit. He also uses a cutter and a 3000 rpm curveball, but sparingly.

There’s a lot to work with there. Horn presents as a classic power-lefty with a clean overhand delivery, and he can really spin the baseball. Still, the Tigers are going to have to unlock much better command than the Cubs or Red Sox were able to manage. He’ll be an interesting project for Chris Fetter’s staff to work with. Of course it’s also possible he doesn’t make it to spring camp.

The 40-man roster is full with these moves, so any signings will have to be followed with a DFA to open a spot. Presumably there will be several of those along the way this offseason as the team signs free agents, and makes trades and waiver claims.

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