Scott Harris is facing a simple but uncomfortable offseason test: make the Tigers better, or leave fans wondering whether the front office is content to run it back.
The pressure is real because Detroit came into the year as the favorite to win the AL Central, then missed the playoffs by several games. Harris has already made clear he doesn’t sound eager to blow things up. In his season wrap-up, he pointed to injuries and a rough month of May as major reasons the season went sideways, and he suggested the organization already has much of what it needs.
That’s exactly why the trade market matters so much. Free agency will be important, but the Tigers also have to explore deals, and two shortstop names have already surfaced as possible targets.
The catch? They couldn’t be more different.
One is Yankees infielder Anthony Volpe, a player who looked like a future cornerstone after a strong 2023 rookie season that included a Gold Glove, 21 home runs and 60 RBIs. Since then, though, his stock has dropped.
He’s regressed, and now he’s looking at a fight for playing time with top prospect George Lombard Jr., who is expected to be the Yankees’ Opening Day shortstop. For a player who may cost $4-5 million, that’s a hard sell if the production looks more like Zack Short numbers.
The other name is Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña, and he’d be a much cleaner fit for Detroit. Peña brings athleticism, contact, power and defense.
He became the first rookie in Astros franchise history to win a Gold Glove Award, hit .272 for his career and launched 22 home runs this past season. He also had back-to-back 20-steal seasons in 2024 and 2025, and he’s still only 29.
If the Tigers are serious about raising the ceiling, Peña is the obvious swing. Volpe offers a much shakier bet, especially after a career-worst two-homer season in 2026 and a steady decline since reaching the majors.
The bigger concern for fans is whether Harris will actually act on that logic. There’s a growing fear that he believes this roster is already close enough, and that the offseason will end with little more than a modest tweak or two. Harris’ comments after the season didn’t exactly calm that anxiety.
Still, if Peña truly becomes available and shortstop is a need, Detroit has the prospect capital to make a move. That farm system was built for moments like this.
For now, though, the safest expectation might be the least exciting one: Tsung-Che Cheng as the only trade addition this offseason.
In Other News...
Tigers Face A High-Stakes Outfield Decision With Real Upside
The Tigers are at a point in the offseason where one move in the outfield could ripple through the rest of the roster, and Seiya Suzuki has emerged as a name worth watching. Detroit has reportedly shown interest in the former Cubs outfielder, a player whose bat would give the lineup a different look and add some needed upside to a group still taking shape.
Suzukis fit is easy to imagine, but the timing is not simple. The market is being shaped by financial questions and labor uncertainty heading into the new season, and there is still no official deal or confirmation from either side. For a Tigers club trying to balance ambition with caution, this is the kind of pursuit that could say a lot about how aggressively it plans to chase improvement. [Read more 🡒]
Tigers Just Signaled A Big Shift In Their 2027 Roster Plans
The Tigers made a clear roster statement as the offseason began, picking up right-hander Drew Andersons club option for 2027 while declining Kenley Jansens $12 million option and sending the veteran closer into free agency. It was the kind of decision that says as much about where a team thinks it is headed as it does about any one player, especially with Detroit also cycling through a full slate of roster housekeeping.
Along with the option calls, the club reinstated eight players from the 60-day injured list, signed Jacob Waguespack to a one-year contract and moved several others through waivers or DFA decisions. Taken together, the days transactions showed the Tigers trimming, sorting and reshaping the edges of the roster, with the Jansen decision standing out as the clearest sign that the bullpen picture for 2027 is already changing. [Read more 🡒]
Tigers Infield Battle Just Got Tougher To Ignore After Prospects Rise
Max Anderson spent this season making a strong case that the Tigers infield picture is getting crowded in a good way. The organizations No. 10 prospect hit .302 with an .863 OPS in 108 Triple-A games and added a Minor League Baseball Gold Glove at second base, a combination that speaks to both the bat and the glove. For a club trying to sort out its next wave of infielders, that kind of all-around step forward is hard to overlook.
Anderson and Hao-Yu Lee are expected to share second base duties moving forward, which gives Detroit a clearer sense of its depth and a little more competition than before. Andersons defensive growth, paired with his production at the plate, puts him in the conversation for next years Opening Day roster, even if nothing is locked in yet. For the Tigers, it is the kind of internal battle that can make a roster decision look a lot more interesting by spring. [Read more 🡒]