The Detroit Tigers brought back Jack Flaherty in free agency.
Here’s how Evan Petzold, Tigers beat writer for the Free Press, evaluates the deal between the Tigers and Flaherty on Feb. 2 in the 2024-25 offseason, with 10 days until pitchers and catchers report to spring training.
The contract: Two years, $35 million (with opt-out clause).
Grade: A.
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The buzz: Jack Flaherty wanted to re-sign with the World Series-champion Los Angeles Dodgers for five years, $100 million at the beginning of the offseason, but his market never developed in the way he expected and the Dodgers never showed interest. By the end of the offseason, Flaherty was practically begging the Tigers to reunite on a short-term contract. Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris took advantage of the opportunity, signing Flaherty to a two-year contract with an opt-out clause after the first season. There’s a lot to unpack with this signing.
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Jack Flaherty stats
Signing Flaherty completes the Tigers’ starting rotation: Flaherty, left-hander Tarik Skubal, right-hander Reese Olson, right-hander Alex Cobb and right-hander Jackson Jobe. The Flaherty signing also puts several starting pitchers on the outside looking in; namely. right-hander Keider Montero, right-hander Casey Mize, right-hander Kenta Maeda and right-hander Matt Manning.
Flaherty is the second-best pitcher among the aforementioned starters. The 29-year-old had a 3.17 ERA with 38 walks and 194 strikeouts across 162 innings in 28 starts in the 2024 season, including a 2.95 ERA with 19 walks and 133 strikeouts across 106⅔ innings in 18 starts for the Tigers. He pitched like an ace with the Tigers, then his performance worsened with the Dodgers.
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Not only do the Tigers have one of the best rotations in the American League, but the Tigers also possess one of the best 1-2 punches in baseball with Skubal and Flaherty.
Jack Flaherty injury history
There is one big red flag: Flaherty is a high risk to suffer an injury in the 2025 season.
He received two injections in the span of three weeks to treat a lower back injury before the July 30 trade deadline in 2024, with the first injection June 10 and the second injection July 2. It wasn’t the first time that happened, as Flaherty also received an injection for lower back pain in 2023.
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The back injury is the reason why the New York Yankees backed out of a trade with the Tigers, leading to the Tigers completing a trade with the Dodgers. The Dodgers approved of Flaherty’s medicals, whereas the Yankees were scared away.
Aside from the back injury, Flaherty dealt with shoulder injuries in the 2021 and 2022 seasons.
Why signing Jack Flaherty makes sense
Flaherty is a talented pitcher.
But the contract is a massive win for Harris, the Tigers’ president of baseball operations.
It’s low-risk, high-reward.
JACK IS BACK:Tigers sign Jack Flaherty to two-year, $35 million contract with opt-out clause
Here’s the deal: Flaherty will earn $25 million in 2025, guaranteed; if he opts in for 2026, he will earn $10 million, but the value will increase to $20 million if he makes at least 15 starts in 2026.
If Flaherty dominates, he will test next offseason’s free-agent market again in search of a bigger contract. If Flaherty struggles, he will return to the Tigers for $10 million with a chance to increase his salary. If Flaherty suffers a serious injury, he will return to the Tigers for $10 million but might not increase his salary.
The best-case scenario: Flaherty performs like an elite-level starting pitcher and opts out. The worst-case scenario: Flaherty opts in because of poor performance or serious injury, leaving the Tigers on the hook for $10 million.
Hat tip to Harris for the shrewd contract structure.
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.
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