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Free agent Jack Flaherty open to Detroit Tigers return in 2025: 'It would be fun'
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- Free agent Jack Flaherty open to Detroit Tigers return in 2025: 'It would be fun'
Former Detroit Tigers right-hander Jack Flaherty , who started Game 1 and Game 5 of the 2024 World Series for the champion Los Angeles Dodgers , is still waiting for a long-term contract.
The 29-year-old remains unsigned for the 2025 season with 20 days until pitchers and catchers report to spring training.
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Flaherty previously expressed interest in returning to the Dodgers, but the Dodgers have moved on. He also has interest in returning to the Tigers .
"I wanted to stay in Detroit," Flaherty said Thursday on the "Foul Territory" show , hosted by A.J. Pierzynski , Erik Kratz and Scott Braun. "We had conversations. I loved it there. I thought the combo of me and Skub (left-hander Tarik Skubal ) was incredible. ... We've been talking to them and talking to other teams. It would be fun to go back there."
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Detroit Tigers pitcher Jack Flaherty (45) throws a pitch against the Philadelphia Phillies in the first inning at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Florida, on Tuesday, March 19, 2024.
The Tigers signed Flaherty to a one-year, $14 million contract in November 2023. Pitching coach Chris Fetter and assistant pitching coach Robin helped him make adjustments to his pitch mix and the way his body moves , which led to newfound success. The Tigers then traded him to the Dodgers at the July 30 trade deadline for prospects Thayron Liranzo and Trey Sweeney .
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Flaherty, who had a 4.99 ERA in 2023, posted a 3.17 ERA with 38 walks and 194 strikeouts across 162 innings in 28 starts in the 2024 season. The eight-year MLB veteran received two injections in the span of three weeks to treat a lower back injury before the trade deadline. Medical concerns about Flaherty's back issue led to the New York Yankees backing out of an agreed upon trade, but after that, the Dodgers completed their trade with the Tigers.
"It was a good year last year," Flaherty said. "As of right now, we're waiting. I just want to play ball."
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For the Tigers, Flaherty had a 2.95 ERA and a 32% strikeout rate in 18 starts. For the Dodgers, Flaherty had a 3.58 ERA and a 26.1% strikeout rate in 10 starts.
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Scott Harris , the Tigers' president of baseball operations, enjoyed having Flaherty on the roster in 2024.
"We love Jack," Harris said Nov. 5. "I've said it a million times. He's a freakishly gifted athlete who has an intense work ethic and just demonstrated his adjustability. I can't really comment on him as a free agent, or what he's going to do in the future, but personally, I really enjoyed getting to work with Jack."
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The Tigers have four starters locked in for the 2025 Opening Day roster : Skubal, right-hander Reese Olson , right-hander Alex Cobb (who signed a one-year, $15 million contract in December 2024) and rookie right-hander Jackson Jobe .
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Skubal won the American League Cy Young Award in 2024.
The fifth spot in the rotation — unless the Tigers add via free agency or trade — will be up for grabs between right-hander Keider Montero , right-hander Casey Mize , right-hander Kenta Maeda , left-hander Brant Hurter and right-hander Matt Manning .
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Flaherty, once projected for five years and $100 million, broke down his experience as a second-time free agent in the 2024-25 offseason.
There's not a lot of activity.
"You go into the offseason with a hope of getting off the board quickly and what not," Flaherty said. "And now we're sitting here on January 23 with no rumblings and nothing really going on. All the other top guys are gone. We waited for (Roki) Sasaki. It's not normal in the fact that I don't know where I'm going to play, don't know where I'm going to go to spring training. In terms of why? I wish I had a really good answer for you. I don't know. I wish I had a better answer other than I don't know what's making this so difficult."
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Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold .
Listen to our weekly Tigers show "Days of Roar" every Monday afternoon on demand at freep.com, Apple Podcasts , Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. And catch all of our podcasts and daily voice briefing at freep.com/podcasts .
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Jack Flaherty, ex-Detroit Tigers RHP, not opposed to 2025 reunion
