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Detroit Tigers veteran Gio Urshela designated for assignment as infield prospects arrive
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- Detroit Tigers veteran Gio Urshela designated for assignment as infield prospects arrive
The Detroit Tigers have made some big changes.
Not only did the Tigers promote infield prospects Jace Jung and Trey Sweeney from Triple-A Toledo for their MLB debuts, but the Tigers also designated veteran third baseman Gio Urshela for assignment, thus removing him from the 40-man roster, according to a source not permitted to discuss roster moves publicly.
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The flurry of roster moves will become official before Friday's game against the New York Yankees at Comerica Park.
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Aug 11, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; Detroit Tigers third baseman Gio Urshela bats against the San Francisco Giants during the fourth inning at Oracle Park.
Urshela, a nine-year MLB veteran, has been placed on waivers.
The Tigers informed Urshela of the decision to place him on waivers after Thursday's 2-1 win over the Seattle Mariners .
Urshela, 32, is still owed about $353,000 of his $1.5 million 2024 salary, which he agreed to when he signed a one-year contract with the Tigers at the beginning of spring training. If he is claimed off waivers, the new team will take on his contract.
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The Tigers will know by Sunday if Urshela clears waivers or gets claimed. He will not play for the Tigers while awaiting his fate because he has been removed from the 40-man roster, which helps create room for the incoming infield prospects.
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His remaining salary is affordable, so Urshela is a candidate to be claimed, but he hit just .243 with five home runs, 19 walks and 49 strikeouts in 92 games with the Tigers, posting a .619 OPS. He has been worth minus-5 defensive runs saved at third base.
Urshela didn't generate trade interest from other teams ahead of the July 30 trade deadline , but even a couple of weeks later, he could generate more interest on the waiver wire because other teams don't have to surrender a prospect for him.
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If he clears waivers, he would be eligible to sign with a new team for the prorated minimum salary (roughly $174,000) while the Tigers remain responsible for the rest of his contract.
His most memorable moment as a Tiger occurred July 13, when he hit a walk-off two-run home run to left-center field for an 11-9 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers at Comerica Park, capping an epic comeback . He also had two homers in a three-game stretch in early June against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.
Before the Tigers, Urshela played for five other teams in his 756-game MLB career: the Cleveland Guardians (2015, 2017), Toronto Blue Jays (2018), New York Yankees (2019-21), Minnesota Twins (2022) and Los Angeles Angels (2023). He suffered a season-ending pelvic injury, which didn't require surgery, in mid-June 2023 with the Angels.
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He spent three weeks on the injured list in 2024 with a right hamstring strain .
Urshela is a career .273 hitter in his MLB career.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold .
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Gio Urshela DFA'ed by Detroit Tigers as infield prospects arrive
