The Tigers got a mixed bag of injury updates Friday, and the common thread is that none of them point to an easy finish.
Jack Flaherty is the closest of the trio to returning. It has been a month since flexor inflammation landed him on the 15-day injured list, and A.J.
Hinch said the right-hander could be ready to throw a bullpen session as soon as this weekend. Based on the team’s usual throwing progression and rehab track for pitchers, Flaherty is still lined up for a return around mid-September if everything stays on course.
Detroit has already gotten a season of peaks and valleys from Flaherty. He owns a 4.59 ERA with a 26.2% strikeout rate and a 10.8% walk rate across 19 starts and 86 1/3 innings. His year has split cleanly in two: a rough 5.81 ERA over his first 52 2/3 innings, then a rebound to a 2.67 ERA in the 33 2/3 innings before the injury.
The problem is that the original expectation was for a relatively minor flexor issue, and he’s already missed more time than the Tigers anticipated. At this stage of the calendar, even one hiccup in the throwing plan could change everything.
If Detroit falls out of the race, that could mean a shutdown. The Tigers are still 2.5 games back of the final AL wild card spot, but they’ve dropped six of their last seven and sit at 61-67.
Brant Hurter’s situation has taken a turn for the worse, too. His minor league rehab assignment has been paused, and Hinch said, “ we don’t expect [Hurter] to stop throwing or completely shut down. But we need to take a mini-step away from pitching this week and get him moving the way he’s supposed to be moving.”
Hurter had been a useful piece for Detroit since debuting in 2024, posting a 2.56 ERA over 133 2/3 innings while working in bulk, starting, and relief roles as part of the Tigers’ “pitching chaos” approach. But lumbar spine inflammation has kept him on the injured list for the past three months, first on the 15-day IL and then the 60-day IL, and his rehab stint in early August has gone badly.
He has a 24.55 ERA in five games and 3 2/3 innings, and his velocity has dipped along with the inflated run total. Even if rehab numbers usually don’t matter much, it’s obvious Hurter isn’t right, and there’s no clear timeline for when he’ll be back in games.
Parker Meadows remains the longest-term concern. He has been on the 60-day IL since April after a concussion and a fractured left radius from an outfield collision with Riley Greene.
Hinch said Meadows is working out at the Tigers’ spring complex in Lakeland and is “he’s running, throwing, catching the ball. But the swing had not been able to be full speed.
It’s the [left] hand and he’s not able to complete the full aggressive swing. There are still some issues with that.”
Meadows is still not close to a rehab assignment, and the clock is very much working against him with the regular season winding down. Hinch said the Tigers haven’t ruled him out, “ yet it feels like it’s been forever and we haven’t been able to push him forward and we’re closing in on September.”
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Tigers Are Giving A Promising Lefty A Real Chance To Stick
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Now the Tigers are planning to use Sears as a bulk reliever in an upcoming bullpen game, which gives him a chance to show he can handle more than just a cameo. For a club that values pitchers who can miss bats and throw strikes, the recent gains in his command and strikeout rate make this a meaningful test, even if the assignment itself is only temporary for now. [Read more 🡒]