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Tigers Take Another Flyer On A Pitcher As Wenceel Perez hits the 60-Day IL
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- Tigers Take Another Flyer On A Pitcher As Wenceel Perez hits the 60-Day IL
(© Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images)
The Tigers add another arm off the scrapheap in Yilber Diaz
The Tigers have been willing to search everywhere for pitching, whether it's the indie leagues or always searching the waiver wire and this addition is no different.
The Detroit Tigers are taking a low-cost shot on right-hander Yilber Díaz, a former Arizona pitching prospect with big arm strength and a clear developmental hurdle.
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Díaz is not a finished product, which is why he was available on waivers, but the raw ingredients are interesting. He works with a power fastball that can live in the mid-to-upper 90s out of the bullpen, along with a slider and knuckle curve that both give him bat-missing potential. The move to relief has simplified the profile. Rather than trying to turn over a lineup multiple times, Díaz can attack in shorter bursts and let the fastball-breaking ball combination play.
For Detroit, the interest is easy to understand. This is a 25-year-old arm with real velocity, prior big league experience and a minor league option, which allows the Tigers to stash him in Toledo without forcing an immediate bullpen move. The Mud Hens can give him regular innings, tighten the strike throwing and see whether the walk rate can move closer to playable.
The main concern is command. Díaz has missed bats in Triple A, but the walks and traffic have kept him from becoming a trustworthy major league bullpen piece. He also does not have a developed changeup, which leaves him more vulnerable against left-handed hitters. That likely limits him to a relief role unless something changes.
The Tigers are not claiming a sure thing. They are claiming an arm with traits. If Díaz throws enough strikes, there is a middle-relief or multi-inning bullpen path here. If the command does not improve, he remains Triple-A depth. For a waiver claim, that is a reasonable gamble.
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Why Toledo makes sense
Díaz needs a runway more than a reset to the rotation. He has already been used exclusively as a reliever in Reno this season, with 26 appearances and zero starts, so Toledo can keep him in that lane and focus on repeatability, first-pitch strikes and getting the fastball back into competitive zones.
The Tigers also get flexibility. Since he was optioned to Toledo, they do not have to make him part of the big league bullpen right away. If he cleans up the walks, he can become an up-and-down relief option. If he does not, Detroit only used a waiver claim to find out.
Detroit hasn't exactly have a bunch of pitchers with a lot of 97 plus in their system. Based on his age, (he turns 26 in August) Detroit will see what they have with Díaz in Toledo and fix the command issue. They have attempted this with Ricky Vanceso, who was a starter mainly in the Dodgers system.
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As for Wenceel Perez , who is now on the 60-Day IL, the swelling has gone down a bit but with the news it was near the orbital bone, it does not bode well. There is no vision lost but after struggling to start the season, Perez was picking it up as of late.
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