Matt

Manning

Just no luck at all for Manning lately. Ironically, even though Manning is long gone from Detroit, his injury had ramifications for the Tigers; the Lions were looking at Enmanuel De Jesus as a replacement for Manning, which forced the Tigers to add the left-hander to their 40-man roster earlier this week.

No word on the financial terms of the contract. The 27-year-old right-hander and former top prospect was a first-round selection by the Tigers (ninth overall) from the 2016 draft class. He hasn’t pitched in the big leagues since 2024 and holds a 4.43 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and a 178/85 K/BB ratio over 254 innings in his career at the game’s highest level. He’ll see if he can rebuild his value in the KBO before a potential return stateside.

Manning went unclaimed on waivers after being designated for assignment last Friday and will likely wind up electing free agency instead of sticking around with the Phillies. The 27-year-old righty was acquired from the Tigers at the trade deadline after struggling mightily at the Triple-A level this season. It’s too early to give up on him completely based on his prospect pedigree, but there haven’t been a ton of encouraging signs of late.

Manning will hit the waiver wire with the Phillies needing 40-man roster space for Walker Buehler. The 27-year-old right-hander was a top prospect not all that long ago, but just profiles as organizational depth at this point. It seems likely Manning will not join a new org for the remainder of 2025 and then test the free-agent waters this fall/winter.

Manning had been designated for assignment earlier in the day and the Phillies decided to pounce. The 27-year-old former top prospect had struggled to a 6.04 ERA and 1.62 WHIP across 50 2/3 innings at Triple-A Toledo. It’s likely that Dave Dombrowski thinks he can fix him and get him back to his former self. It’s a nice no-risk gamble for the Phillies.

The team needed to make room on the 40-man roster for newly acquired reliever Paul Sewald. Manning recently moved to the bullpen at Triple-A but still posted a 6.04 ERA and 1.62 WHIP in 50 2.3 innings at Triple-A Toledo.

Manning has been successful since the Tigers moved him to the pen a few weeks ago, allowing two earned runs in nine innings. Unfortunately, he’s still walked seven during that span, and he’s yet to see a velocity boost in his shorter outings. He’ll probably get a look in the majors at some point, but he’s not showing closer potential right now.

Manning’s Triple-A ERA now sits at 9.60 on the season. The 27-year-old had some sleeper appeal heading into the 2024 season, but he struggled in the minors last year as well, and it might be time to turn the page.

Manning had a 12.00 ERA in three appearances this spring, including one start. The 27-year-old right-hander had a 3.00 WHIP as he allowed 10 hits, including two home runs, and had a SO:BB of 6:8. The Tigers have to open rotation spots with Alex Cobb dealing with a hip injury, but Manning quickly fell back in the completion with Kenta Maeda, Casey Mize and Jackson Jobe. Now he finds himself in minor league camp.

The Tigers don’t seem concerned about the need for an injection, and Cobb is scheduled to play catch again on Wednesday. Obviously, needing an injection to “aid” in the recovery process because the hip isn’t healing enough on its own is not a great sign. Casey Mize, Matt Manning, and Kenta Maeda are all getting longer looks at rotation spots with Cobb delayed.