The Detroit Tigers are comfortably atop the American League Central and hope to make a deep postseason run. As is the case with all contending teams, MLB’s trade deadline provides a great opportunity to make additions to the roster in a way that can give a club a much-needed boost ahead of the last two months of the season.
With just eight days until that deadline, the Tigers are a team that is expected to make moves, but at the same breathe, they already have a complete roster. It’s more about solidifying the team’s pitching staff and preparing for October baseball. There have been rumors that the Pittsburgh Pirates are selling off multiple All-Star pitchers, and the Tigers could be in the market for one.
Tigers Land David Bednar from the Pirates
In what would be a great addition for the Detroit Tigers, Detroit’s front office should consider asking about reliever David Bednar from the Pittsburgh Pirates.
ESPN.com’s Jeff Passan believes the Tigers are a team that will be “adding, but not all-in”. That means they can certainly improve parts of their roster (like every team can at this time of year), but they aren’t desperate to make moves.
Here is what Passan believes the Tigers’ plan is:
“The latest: The Tigers have been among the two or three best teams in MLB all season, and if they had an area of distinct weakness, they could dip into an excellent farm system to address it. They don’t, though, which leaves them in a position to pick and choose their upgrades. While a depth starter is on the list, a swing-and-miss reliever is at the top of the list, and [David] Bednar offers three-well-above-average pitches in his fastball, curveball, and splitter.”
Passan named the Tigers as the best fit for Bednar. In 35 innings this season, he has a 2.31 ERA and 15 saves. Bednar has seemed to regain his former 2022 and 2023 form when he was named as an All-Star. He also has 48 strikeouts this season, which averages out to well-above one K/inning. If the Pirates do decide to sell all of their assets, Bednar has to be close to the top of the list. He’s also only thrown 35 innings this season, which means he should be relatively fresh for when the Tigers would need him most, in October. Bednar could also serve as the team’s closer if needed.
How Much Would Bednar Cost?
Well, in the same trade piece by ESPN’s Passan, the MLB insider made it very clear that the Pittsburgh Pirates are searching for offensive production. A trade package for Bednar could either be a player like second baseman Colt Keith, or a couple of prospects like Thayron Liranzo or Hau-Yu Lee. Both prospects are on the verge of being ready for the pros, and are prospects the Detroit Tigers can afford to give up if it means they are more poised to win the World Series this year.
Again, Detroit is in a great situation because adding any pieces at the deadline would just be icing on the cake to a roster that is one of the closest to being complete in baseball.
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