The Detroit Tigers have one clear offseason priority, and it’s not hard to spot. After the first day of the MLB GM Meetings in Las Vegas, president of baseball operations Scott Harris made it plain that Detroit is looking to add pitching depth, with a swing-and-miss arm for the bullpen high on the list after the club opted out of Kenley Jansen’s $12 million 2027 contract.
That backdrop naturally brought up the question that hangs over every Tigers offseason: who is actually available? Detroit already showed at the trade deadline that no one is untouchable when it moved Tarik Skubal and Casey Mize, and Jon Morosi of MLB Network pressed Harris on whether another homegrown star, Riley Greene, could be in play.
Greene’s situation is different from Skubal’s and Mize’s. The three-time All-Star and former Silver Slugger winner is not set to reach free agency until after the 2028 season, which makes him a much tougher name to attach to trade chatter.
“We love Riley,” Harris told Morosi. “I’m focused on Riley being a big part of the middle of our order and he makes us better in a bunch of different ways. Obviously, on the trade front, we got to listen to everything, but it’s not what we’re focused on right now.”
That’s the kind of answer that keeps Greene planted in the center of Detroit’s plans, at least for now. Over the last three seasons, he’s become one of the key pieces of the Tigers’ offense, and his production has kept climbing in its own way.
In 2025, the former first-round pick struck out 201 times while hitting 36 home runs and driving in 111 RBIs. In 2026, his strikeout total dropped to 157, though that came with fewer home runs and a better batting average.
Greene is also back in the mix for hardware, once again a finalist for the American League Silver Slugger Award. With his contract status and team control, it’s easy to see why other clubs would ask about him. It’s also easy to see why Detroit would hesitate to move him.
An extension wouldn’t be simple, either. Greene is heading into his age-26 season and still has two seasons before he reaches free agency, which means any deal would have to reflect how much he’s already grown into a centerpiece. If Harris views him as a long-term middle-of-the-order bat, the Tigers could try to lock him in through the arbitration years before he ever gets to the open market.
For now, though, the message out of Las Vegas is straightforward: Greene is not the focus of the trade conversation. And for Tigers fans, that alone is enough to breathe a little easier as the offseason starts to take shape.
In Other News...
Tigers Just Made A Big Bet On Fixing Their Injury Problem
The Tigers are making a notable push to modernize how they handle player health, bringing in Scott Peters as Medical Director and Jeremiah Randall as Head Athletic Trainer and Personal Therapist. It is a clear sign the organization wants to rethink the way it approaches recovery, conditioning and the day-to-day work that keeps players on the field.
Detroit is not just adding names to the staff, either. The overhaul is aimed at building a more connected medical and performance structure, one that blends injury prevention and rehabilitation with a heavier use of analytics. For a club trying to get more out of its roster over a full season, the bet is that better information and a different process can help change the injury conversation. [Read more 🡒]
Tigers Just Added A Bullpen Answer Fans Will Immediately Debate
The Tigers have moved quickly to bolster the back end of their bullpen, agreeing to a one-year, $11.5 million deal with veteran closer Emilio Pagn. It is the kind of signing that immediately sharpens the conversation around how Detroit wants to finish games, especially with Pagn coming off his time with the Reds and choosing to turn down a $10 million player option to make the move.
Pagn brings a profile that should spark plenty of debate among fans and evaluators alike. He misses bats and limits walks at a useful rate, but he has also shown a willingness to live with some home-run risk, and the shape of his pitch mix will be watched closely as Detroit tries to determine where he fits in the late innings. [Read more 🡒]
Ian Happ Could Leave The Tigers With The Same Lineup Problem
Ian Happs name makes sense for a club looking to add a proven left-handed bat, especially after he kept his power production steady with 24 homers for the Cubs in 2026 and has now cleared the 20-homer mark in four straight seasons. The appeal is obvious for Detroit: a switch-hitting outfielder with a track record, enough pop to matter in the middle of a lineup, and a contract range that would land in the two-year, $36 million to $42 million neighborhood.
The fit gets trickier once the roster picture comes into focus. Happs best defensive spot overlaps with a current Tigers player, and his struggles against left-handed pitching last season only add another layer of uncertainty for a team trying to balance lineup construction with budget limits. Detroit can use offense, but this is the kind of move that could solve one problem while creating another, which is why the front office has plenty to weigh before making a real push. [Read more 🡒]