Detroit Free Press

Evan Petzold   | Detroit Free Press Show Caption Hide Caption Detroit Tigers’ Casey Mize talks about his third outing in spring training Detroit Tigers right-hander Casey Mize talks Saturday, March 13, 2021, after giving up six earned runs on four hits and three walks to the Phillies. Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. —

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. — Detroit Tigers second baseman Jonathan Schoop is thankful for the Curacao National Team. The 29-year-old, waiting in his home country for a work visa, missed more than two weeks of spring training. Upon his arrival, Scoop needed to go through the COVID-19 intake screening process and quarantine. He was fully

Jeff Seidel | Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. — Someone from the adoption agency called Renee Lange at work. “It was 2:30 in the afternoon,” she said. “And they said, ‘This girl had a baby yesterday. Get to the hospital between 6 and 6:15. She’s got this short window to be there.’” It was Oct. 3, 1995. Her

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press CLEARWATER, Fla. — The Detroit Tigers lost to the Philadelphia Phillies, 9-3, on Saturday at BayCare Ballpark. The Tigers dropped to 6-6 in Grapefruit League play. What happened Right-hander Casey Mize — the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 draft — started and couldn’t make it through three innings. He allowed six

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press CLEARWATER, Fla. — Right-hander Julio Teheran looks like a pitcher reborn. His fastball velocity averaged 92 mph in his three innings for the Detroit Tigers on Friday, and he maxed out at 93.4 mph. The 30-year-old recorded 10 swings-and-misses, including five with his slider and three with his two-seam fastball. All

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press CLEARWATER, Fla. — Outfielder Daz Cameron pointed to his right elbow as he explained what happened a few months earlier in Puerto Rico. The Detroit Tigers prospect, ranked by MLB Pipeline as the No. 7 player in the farm system, went south for the offseason to play in the Puerto Rican

Carlos Monarrez | Detroit Free Press There’s an old joke. Two people are eating at a restaurant. One says, “The food here is terrible.” The other replies, “Yes, and the portions are so small.” I thought of that joke Thursday when Major League Baseball announced several rule changes in the minors this season, including eliminating the

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. — Don’t expect to see Detroit Tigers left-hander Tarik Skubal back in the minor leagues, surely not if the remainder of his spring training resembles his first two starts. After posting three scoreless innings in a 10-6 loss Thursday to the Toronto Blue Jays at TD Ballpark in Dunedin, manager AJ Hinch believes

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. — The Detroit Tigers lost to the New York Yankees, 4-2, on Friday at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium. The Tigers dropped to 6-5 in Grapefruit League play. What happened Right-hander Julio Teheran started for the Tigers and went three innings. His fastball velocity averaged 92 mph and maxed

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. — Let the roster trimming begin. The Detroit Tigers made their first round of spring training cuts Friday, sending four pitchers to Triple-A Toledo: right-handers Alex Faedo, Beau Burrows and Kyle Funkhouser and left-hander Joey Wentz. “The group is now going to go to mini camp,” manager AJ

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press DUNEDIN, Fla. — The expected role for Renato Nunez was made clear by the Detroit Tigers from the moment they signed him to a minor-league contract this offseason. The 26-year-old doesn’t need to be the everyday first baseman. But for Nunez to make the 26-man roster for Opening Day and cash in on his $1.3

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press DUNEDIN, Fla. — The Detroit Tigers lost 10-6 against the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday at TD Ballpark. The game only lasted seven innings. The Tigers dropped to 6-4 in Grapefruit League play. What happened Right-hander Michael Fulmer started for the Tigers and went two-plus innings, but he gave up three

DUNEDIN, Fla. — Detroit Tigers second baseman Jonathan Schoop, following a lengthy delay, has been fully cleared to join spring training camp. The organization re-signed the 29-year-old to a one-year, $4.5 million contract this offseason. He faced trouble getting his work visa to enter the U.S. from Curacao, his home country. Upon his arrival, he needed to

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press CLEARWATER, Fla. — Detroit Tigers right-hander Franklin Perez jogged out of the bullpen Wednesday to make his highly anticipated spring training debut. Three and a half years ago, many believed Perez — the centerpiece of the 2017 Justin Verlander trade with the Houston Astros — would be the franchise’s future ace.

Evan Petzold   | Detroit Free Press Show Caption Hide Caption Detroit Tigers SS Willi Castro explains his three-run HR vs. Yankees Detroit Tigers shortstop Willi Castro talks Tuesday, March 9, 2021, after hitting a three-run homer against the New York Yankees in spring training. Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press CLEARWATER, Fla. — The Detroit Tigers

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press CLEARWATER, Fla. — When the Detroit Tigers called old friend Ian Krol to offer him a minor-league contract in December, the left-hander — eager to get back to the major leagues for the first time in nearly three years — couldn’t help but smile. The agreement between Krol and general manager Al Avila served as

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. — Three years ago, Detroit Tigers owner Christopher Ilitch gazed into the stands at Joker Marchant Stadium while fielding questions about the future of the franchise. At the time, the franchise’s rebuild was in its earliest stage. His message then: “We’re really focused on, and my vision is to ensure,

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. — The last two weeks were relatively complicated for Victor Reyes, to say the least. For more than 14 days, the 26-year-old outfielder waited for clearance to become a full participant with the Detroit Tigers in spring training. Visa and travel issues were at the center of his delay, and

Evan Petzold | Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. — The Detroit Tigers secured a 6-5 victory against the New York Yankees on Tuesday at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Fla. The Tigers improved to 6-2 in Grapefruit League play. What happened Willi Castro put the Tigers ahead, 3-2, with a three-run home run — his third homer of

Evan Petzold   | Detroit Free Press Show Caption Hide Caption AJ Hinch shares next step for Detroit Tigers: ‘We’ve got to push them’ Detroit Tigers manager AJ Hinch talks Tuesday, March 9, 2021, about his team after a day off from spring training. Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press LAKELAND, Fla. — The Detroit Tigers are