The Detroit Tigers took another hit to their pitching staff Tuesday, placing right-hander Kyle Finnegan on the 15-day injured list with left groin inflammation and ending his season in the process.
Finnegan’s year never really got on track. He is set to close out 2025 with a 4.30 ERA, the first time in his career he has finished a season above 3.76. The roughest stretch came after the All-Star break, when he put up a 9.33 ERA.
The move is retroactive to September 16, and Detroit recalled right-hander Ty Madden from Triple-A Toledo to fill the opening.
At 35, Finnegan will now turn his attention to the offseason and getting healthy again. The injury also raises the possibility that the groin problem had been bothering him for a while, given how sharply his numbers dipped.
Madden gives the Tigers another arm as they try to get through the final stretch. He made his debut two years ago, but his 2025 season was wiped out by a rotator cuff strain that included setbacks during rehab. Even with the limited major league experience, he has logged a 3.46 ERA in 39 innings this year.
Detroit has nine games left this month and still needs plenty of help if it wants to reach October. For now, the only thing it can control is winning the games in front of it.
The Tigers are in the middle of a four-game set with the Chicago White Sox, wrapping up their final road trip of the season before heading back to Comerica Park for matchups with the Washington Nationals and the Pittsburgh Pirates.
They are also trying to navigate the stretch without both Casey Mize and Tarik Skubal, a blow that landed hard with the fan base at the trade deadline. Even so, the roster still carries plenty of young talent, and that gives Detroit something to keep building around.
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Riley Greenes Brief Tigers Number Change Had A Meaning Fans Should Know
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The bigger question may not be about this week or even this season, but about how the Tigers want to shape their 2027 rotation. Anderson and Montero are both making a case to be part of it, and the choice could become more complicated if the club decides a six-man rotation makes the most sense for health and development. For a team trying to balance immediate stability with long-term growth, this is the kind of internal race that can end up mattering a lot more than it first appears. [Read more 🡒]