The Detroit Tigers have signed right-hander Eli Villalobos to a minor league contract after being designated for assignment by the Miami Marlins last month. According to the team’s transaction log, Villalobos was signed on Monday and assigned to the Tigers rookie-level minor league affiliate.
Eli Villalobos made his major league debut earlier this season with the Marlins, appearing in three games as a reliever. He tossed 4 1/3 innings, allowing one run on three hits and a pair of walks with three strikeouts. The 26-year-old also logged 18 innings with Triple-A Jacksonville, recording a 4.50 ERA with 22 strikeouts and 11 walks.
Miami optioned him back to the minors on May 11th and outrighted him off the 40-man roster later that month. Villalobos rejected what would have been his second career outright assignment in favor of free agency after clearing waivers. He last pitched on May 24th and likely needs time to get ramped back up before settling into a relief role with Triple-A Toledo.
Tigers Sign Free Agent Eli Villalobos
While Villalobos has never ranked as a high-end prospect, the Marlins added him to their 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 draft in 2022. Between Double-A and Triple-A that year, Villalobos posted a 2.86 ERA with 101 strikeouts and a 9.4% walk rate over 78 ⅔ innings. He has a sub-4.00 ERA and strikeout rates north of 25% in two seasons of action between Double-A and Triple-A. Coming off a career-worst 18% walk rate last season, Villalobos posted a 12.8% walk rate between Triple-A Jacksonville and Miami.
The Tigers’ bullpen led the majors with a 1.86 ERA through April 14th but has struggled ever since. Detroit’s 4.76 bullpen ERA since April 15th is the fourth-worst in MLB.
Reliever Alex Lange led Detroit in saves last year but was demoted after struggling through 18 games this year. He suffered a lat strain while pitching for Triple-A Toledo on June 14th and will undergo season-ending surgery next week. Right-hander Alex Faedo moved his way into higher-leverage spots for the Tigers before he was sidelined with hip inflammation. The 28-year-old will likely need one or two rehab appearances before he rejoins the Detroit bullpen.
If he can continue to improve his command, Eli Villalobos could be a near-term bullpen option for the Detroit Tigers.
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