Troy

Watson

He’ll head to Triple-A Tacoma. The 29-year-old Watson, an experienced swingman, has never pitched in the majors. The Tigers added him to their 40-man last month in order to prevent him from leaving the organization, but they kept him in Triple-A afterwards and DFA’d him earlier this week. He had a 3.27 ERA and a 38/18 K/BB in 55 innings over eight starts and nine relief appearances for Triple-A Toledo.

Watson never wound up making it to Detroit after being added to the club’s 40-man roster last month. The 29-year-old reliever should clear waivers and wind up back at Triple-A Toledo.

With Will Vest being moved to the 60-day injured list on Sunday, the Tigers had an opening on their 40-man roster to add Watson. The 29-year-old hurler has compiled a 2.88 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and a 39/20 K/BB ratio over 56 1/3 innings primarily at Triple-A Toledo this season. He could get a chance to finally make his big league debut before the summer is through.

As is the case with most of the early cuts at this time of the spring, there are no real surprises among the group. All four pitchers are dealing with injuries and will continue their rehab on the minor league side of camp. The Tigers are now down to 63 players remaining in major league camp.

Watson, 28, had a 2.75 ERA and a 97/37 K/BB in 104 2/3 innings between Double- and Triple-A last year. He opened up as a reliever at Erie before making 14 starts, with the last 10 of those coming at Toledo. He’ll make an unusually high $1.2 million if he’s in the majors, which is probably meant to discourage anyone from taking him in the Rule 5 draft.

Watson was acquired by the Tigers in the ever-so-rare post-deadline trade, and the Tigers will give him another look in the Grapefruit League. In 2024, he forged an ugly 7.53 ERA over 36 appearances — 15 starts — with an 81/49 K/BB across 75 1/3 innings.

Watson heads to the Tigers in a rare post trade deadline deal as extra organizational depth. The 27-year-old righty holds an inflated 8.61 ERA, 2.09 WHIP and 48/30 K/BB ratio across 46 innings (26 appearances, seven starts) this season at the Triple-A level.