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Tigers Fail to Land Elite Closer, Raising Playoff Concerns

Summary

  • Tigers president declined to trade for top relievers
  • Fans envious of Phillies landing Jhoan Duran
  • Lack of elite bullpen arm could haunt Tigers in postseason
Tigers Fail to Land Elite Closer, Raising Playoff Concerns

As of August 5th, 2025, the Detroit Tigers are one of the top teams in the American League, sitting 15-16 games over .500. However, their president of baseball operations, Scott Harris, made the decision not to trade for any of the high-profile relievers that were on the market last week.

Bullpen arms such as Mason Miller, Ryan Helsley, David Bednar, Griffin Jax, and Jhoan Duran were all moved to other teams, but the Tigers opted not to part with their prospect capital to land one of these players. This decision has drawn criticism from fans, particularly from Mike Valenti of 97.1 The Ticket.

Valenti expressed his frustration, noting that he was "jealous" of the Philadelphia Phillies for acquiring Duran from the Minnesota Twins, one of the two relievers he had hoped the Tigers would trade for. Duran is not a rental, meaning the Phillies will have him for this season and the next two, which further exacerbates Valenti's disappointment in the Tigers' inaction.

The upcoming postseason will be a true test for the Tigers, as the lack of an elite arm in their bullpen could come back to haunt them. With the team in a prime position to make a deep playoff run, the decision not to bolster the bullpen may prove to be a costly one for Detroit.

Disclaimer: This story has been auto-aggregated and auto-summarised by a computer program. This story has not been edited or created by the Feedzop team.

FAQ

The Detroit Tigers fans were jealous of the Philadelphia Phillies for acquiring relief pitcher Jhoan Duran from the Minnesota Twins, as Duran was one of the top relievers the Tigers were reportedly interested in but failed to trade for.
The lack of an elite bullpen arm could come back to haunt the Detroit Tigers in the upcoming playoffs, as they are currently one of the best teams in the American League and have a real chance at making a deep postseason run.
Mike Valenti, the host of "The Mike Valenti Show with Rico" on 97.1 The Ticket, was critical of the Detroit Tigers' decision not to trade for a marquee reliever like Jhoan Duran or Griffin Jax, stating that he was "jealous" of the Phillies for landing Duran.

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