Player News
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Maeda's $10 million contract "likely gives him an edge" to open the season as the Tigers' fifth starter, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports. Maeda had a disastrous first season in Detroit, finishing with a 6.09 ERA across 17 starts and 12 relief appearances. He has looked sharp this spring, showing an uptick in velocity while allowing three runs with a 9:1 K:BB over five innings. Casey Mize and Keider Montero look to be Maeda's chief competitors for the No. 5 spot, while Jackson Jobe remains the heavy favorite to be the fourth starter. Whoever wins the fifth spot in the rotation would, theoretically, be holding it down only until Alex Cobb (hip) is ready, although there's no timetable for Cobb's return.
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Maeda tossed two scoreless innings in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Phillies. He didn't allow a hit or a walk and struck out four. Making his first spring training appearance, Maeda looked comfortable in a starting role, as he breezed through the first two innings of the game. The veteran righty has displayed increased velocity in camp, and that translated into four strikeouts among the six batters he retired. Maeda struggled mightily in 2024, posting a career-worst 6.09 ERA across 112.1 regular-season innings, but a bounceback campaign is possible in 2025. With Alex Cobb (hip) unlikely to be ready for the start of the season, Maeda may have a path to some starts in the early going.
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Maeda was throwing 92 mph during a live batting practice session Tuesday, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports. It's up from the 90.8 mph he averaged with his four-seamer last season and significantly more velocity than he was showing during spring training last year. With Alex Cobb (hip) slated to begin the season on the injured list, Maeda has a chance to make the Tigers' rotation out of spring training. That said, after collecting a 6.09 ERA over 17 starts and 12 relief appearances last season, Maeda has a lot to prove this spring. He will start Detroit's Grapefruit League opener Saturday.
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With Alex Cobb (hip) likely out for about a month, Maeda could be at least a temporary option to slide into the starting rotation, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports. Cobb's injury figures to prevent him from being able to ramp up properly for Opening Day, so the Tigers will have to fill his rotation spot for at least a turn or two. Detroit has Tarik Skubal, Reese Olson and Jack Flaherty locked in as starters, and the team could turn to the likes of Maeda, Jackson Jobe and Casey Mize to round things out. Maeda is a veteran option with plenty of MLB starts under his belt, so he could probably make the transition fairly quickly after pitching in relief to wrap up last season. The righty struggled in 2024, posting a career-worst 6.09 ERA, which ultimately prompted the move out of the rotation. If Maeda starts early in 2025, fantasy managers may want to take a wait-and-see approach given his rough performance a year ago.
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Maeda may get another shot at a rotation spot this year, per Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic, though Detroit's addition of Jack Flaherty could push the former into the bullpen. Maeda was brought over to Detroit before last season to start games, but he struggled mightily in his first year with the team, posting an ugly 6.09 ERA across 29 appearances (17 starts). The veteran righty did fare a bit better as a reliever, posting a 4.44 ERA out of the bullpen. Maeda stood to potentially get another chance at starting in 2025, though with Jack Flaherty joining the team Sunday, the rotation suddenly looks a bit more crowded. Flaherty, Tarik Skubal, Reese Olson and veteran newcomer Alex Cobb should all be locked into rotation spots. That leaves Maeda competing with Jackson Jobe and Casey Mize for the No. 5 starter spot with Keider Montero and Brant Hurter as longer-shot candidates. The one thing working in Maeda's favor is that he is owed $10 million this season and Detroit may look to give him one last shot as a starter.
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Stats
| Year | Team | APP | GS | INN | W | L | S | K | BBI | HA | ERA | WHIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | DET | 29 | 17 | 112.3 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 96 | 31 | 124 | 6.08 | 1.37 |
| 2023 | MIN | 21 | 20 | 104.3 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 117 | 28 | 94 | 4.22 | 1.16 |
Last 7 Games
| DATE | Opp | W | L | S | INN | HA | ERA | BBI | K | WHIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9/29 | vs  |
- | 1 | - | 4.2 | 5 | 6.30 | 1 | 5 | 1.29 |
| 9/20 | @  |
- | - | - | 2.1 | 0 | 5.06 | 0 | 5 | 0.00 |
| 9/14 | vs |
- | - | - | 2.0 | 2 | 5.79 | 1 | 2 | 1.50 |
| 9/08 | @  |
- | - | - | 2.0 | 3 | 4.50 | 0 | 2 | 1.50 |
| 9/05 | @  |
- | - | - | 1.2 | 0 | 5.40 | 0 | 1 | 0.00 |
| 8/28 | vs  |
1 | - | - | 4.1 | 4 | 6.00 | 2 | 5 | 1.38 |
| 8/22 | @  |
- | 1 | - | 5.0 | 9 | 10.80 | 2 | 5 | 2.20 |
Upcoming Games
| date | Opp | time | Scheduled Starter |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3/27 | @  |
7:10 PM | Not Announced Yet |
| 3/28 | @ |
10:10 PM | Not Announced Yet |
| 3/29 | @ |
9:10 PM | Not Announced Yet |
| 3/31 | @  |
9:40 PM | Not Announced Yet |
| 4/01 | @ |
9:40 PM | Not Announced Yet |
| 4/02 | @ |
4:10 PM | Not Announced Yet |
| 4/04 | vs |
1:10 PM | Not Announced Yet |