The Detroit Tigers need to catch up with former Cy Young Ace rival in MLB Free Agency

The Detroit Tigers are entering the offseason right after coming out of nowhere to become the hottest team in baseball and making it through the postseason after playing near double-digit games in late August.

Nothing was done about it in Detroit either, eliminating it Houston Astro in the Wild Card round and moved on to the ALDS, where they lost a heartbreaking fifth game to their division rival Cleveland Rangers. As the Tigers head into the offseason, they are adopting a strategy that should be much more aggressive now that the team has shown they may be just a few pieces away from competing in the World Series.

One of the reasons the Cleveland game fell flat was the lack of quality shooting behind the superstar ace Tarik Skubalwho was the best pitcher in the world throughout history. Although updates are needed in both cases corner kicks and in general more power is needed in the squad, the biggest need may be to find help after Skubal in the starting rotation. Roger Castillo of FanSided has a way that Detroit can not only strengthen their own rotation, but weaken the team they were eliminated from, bringing Cy Young to the 2020 American League, Shane Biebereven though the ace is bouncing back from injury.

“The Tigers added speed to Jack Flaherty’s game, and the results gave Detroit a better prospect at the trade deadline,” Castillo wrote. “After Tommy John surgery, Bieber working with Chris Fetter, Robin Lund and Juan Nieves could get him back to Cy Young form at a slightly lower cost due to the injury.”

Bieber started the 2024 season hot, allowing zero runs in 12 innings, but that didn’t last long when Cleveland announced he would be undergoing a season-ending Tommy John. This came after a 2023 season in which he was partially healthy, made 21 starts and posted a respectable ERA of 3.80. Bieber doesn’t really it was elitist since 2022, when he had nearly 200 strikeouts and a 2.88 ERA in 31 starts.

The injury situation makes this difficult design a contract for Bieber, but a shorter deal is likely being considered whether he stays in Cleveland or decides to leave. At just 29 years old, there is reason to be optimistic that the two-time All-Star can turn things around and return to the top ranks of major league pitchers, but committing to him financially would certainly be zero risk for the Tigers.