Jacob Waguespack has quietly become one of the few bullpen bright spots in a Tigers season that has gone sideways fast.
That matters because the rest of the unit has been a mess. Kenley Jansen has fallen short, Kyle Finnegan had an ugly year, Will Vest struggled badly before getting hurt, Brenan Hanifee was also ineffective before landing on the IL, and both Beau Brieske and Andrew Sears have been hard to trust. For a club that needs to wipe the slate clean in 2027, the bullpen looks like the obvious place to start.
Waguespack has given Detroit a reason to pause before it tears everything down.
The 32-year-old, now in just his fourth MLB season after spending time in Japan, came in on a one-year deal worth about $850,000 for 2026. That kind of low-cost gamble has paid off in a big way.
Among Tigers relievers with at least 40 innings this season, he owns the best ERA at 2.47. He’s also tied for second on the staff in bullpen WAR at 1.2, trailing only Tyler Holton’s 1.3.
For a pitcher who had never posted an ERA below 4.38 in the majors, that’s a major turn. But Waguespack has looked steady, efficient and far more dependable than most of the arms around him.
His 2.47 ERA leads the Tigers’ bullpen, and his 0.89 WHIP and .150 batting average against are both career bests. He’s also thrown 43 2/3 innings, his highest workload since 2019.
The bigger picture in Detroit still points toward a reset. The bullpen has been the clearest disappointment on the roster, and the Tigers are staring at an offseason where president of baseball operations Scott Harris has to make real changes.
His major additions this year - Jansen, Justin Verlander and Framber Valdez - all came up short. Jansen wasn’t as dominant as expected at 38, Verlander was limited to two starts because of health, and Valdez turned in his worst ERA since 2019 and his fewest wins since 2020.
That leaves Harris with pressure to act quickly. The pitching staff was supposed to be a strength, but it never lived up to that billing, and the trades of Tarik Skubal and Casey Mize only made things worse. There are some promising arms in the minors, including River Ryan, Cameron Flukey and Kash Mayfield, but Detroit can’t count on the farm alone to patch over a bullpen that needs help.
So while the Tigers’ overall outlook calls for a teardown, Waguespack has done enough to separate himself from the wreckage. He looks like one of the few relievers worth keeping in the mix when the organization tries to build something better in 2027.
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Kerry Carpenter's Tigers Future Suddenly Looks Far Less Secure
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AJ Hinch has left the door open for Carpenter to win back an everyday job when he is healthy in 2027, but nothing about that path looks guaranteed right now. The Tigers are treating him more like a platoon bat at the moment, and his ability to stick will depend on more than offense alone, with his defense, versatility and how he handles competition from other players all part of the equation. [Read more 🡒]