Detroit Tigers make second round of cuts from major league camp

Matt Manning is the biggest name of those optioned to Triple-A Toledo.

The Detroit Tigers put in their second round of cuts from major league camp after Sunday’s victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates . With just over two weeks until Opening Day, the central roster battles in camp are starting to shape up, and the starting pitchers are going to keep stretching out to 75 and then 90 pitches per outing. That makes it harder to schedule pitchers on the fringes of the roster without moving them over to the minor league side of camp. As a result, four pitchers were optioned to Triple-A Toledo on Sunday.

The biggest name is right-handed starting pitcher Matt Manning. The Tigers 2016 first rounder struggled with his command early in camp and he was already well on the outside looking in as far as the Tigers’ starting rotation was concerned. Manning is still working on implementing his new split-changeup and trying to develop better consistency with his slider. This burns his last option, and while not a surprise, it does highlight how close he is to being cut from the 40-man roster at this point. Now 27 years old and stagnant in his development for a few seasons now, he’s running out of time to turn things around even to the point of becoming a viable relief option.

A.J. Hinch opined that Manning was still close to be able to help the team if he can make a few more adjustments, but as things stand he clearly was getting optioned by the end of the camp anyway. Getting on with it will allow him to keep starting over in minor league camp.

Maybe the most surprising cut is reliever Tyler Owens, but that’s really no surprise either. The 24-year-old Owens is arguably the Tigers best relief prospect and he’s been impressive in camp. He’s only made four appearances totaling 3 ¹⁄₃ innings of work, but he hasn’t walked a batter nor allowed a run, while striking out four along the way. A.J. Hinch has used him to close out games a few times, and Owens filled that role for Gabe Alvarez’s Double-A Erie SeaWolves last season as they won their second straight Eastern League championship.

Owens will be back. It’s just that the Tigers’ bullpen is pretty well set at this point, with only a decision about the last spot and whether it will go to Kenta Maeda or whether the veteran right-hander might make the rotation, opening up the final spot in the bullpen, yet to be determined. Getting Owens some work at Triple-A Toledo makes sense as the Tigers work through their other options. He’ll be at the top of the list for a call-up in case of injury in the Tigers’ pen.

Relievers RHP Tyler Mattison and RHP Chase Lee were also optioned to minor league camp on Sunday. Mattison is still rehabbing his way back from Tommy John surgery he had last spring and probably won’t be ready for call-up consideration until June or July. If he gets back to good health he could really help the Tigers out with his really good riding fastball and breaking ball combination. Low powered sidewinder Lee wasn’t particularly impressive in camp and is pretty specifically a reliever who matches up well with right-handed hitters. He needs to be a lot more consistent in his command considering that his sneaky fastball tops out in the low 90’s.

Finally, non-roster invitees RHP Ricky Vanasco and RHP Ryan Miller were also reassigned to minor league camp.

Injury news

Ty Madden’s velocity was down this spring, and he has been shut down with right rotator cuff inflammation. The right-hander is probably around ninth on the starting pitcher depth chart at this point, so there’s no rush and the Tigers will take the time to make sure he’s 100 percent. Look for him to return to the Toledo Mud Hens’ rotation in late April or early May if things go as planned.

In other news, Parker Meadows has started to get some feeling back in his upper right arm after suffering from nerve trouble over the past few weeks. He’s just about out of time to be ready for Opening Day, but the Tigers seem somewhat optimistic that he might get back on the field fairly soon.

Wenceel Pérez, meanwhile, was the top option to replace Meadows temporarily in center field, but he’s had back tightness over the past week. Pérez has had some back trouble in the past, so he reported it quickly. That may have saved him from a more significant injury. The Tigers expect him to be back in action by the end of the week.

There are still 16 games left on the Grapefruit League calendar. The featured attraction this week will be the Tigers’ Spring Breakout matchup with the Atlanta Braves on Saturday, March 15. Top prospects from both clubs will play an exhibition game as part of the Spring Breakout series which takes place from March 13-16.