Tigers must trade 'nightmare' starting pitcher despite Tarik Skubal injury originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
This right-hander's time with the Detroit Tigers may be coming to an end soon.
The 30-year-old is walking six batters per nine innings through his first 10 starts of the season.
His performance is doing the Tigers more harm than good, writes FanSided's Mark Powell.
"[Jack] Flaherty has an ERA well over five. I don't particularly care if the Tigers trade him for spare parts or DFA him entirely," wrote Powell. "At one point, this former Tigers frontline starting pitcher was among the most-desired trade assets in all of baseball. He's been anything but that, and a borderline headcase on the mound this season."
Given how poorly Flaherty has performed on the mound, the Tigers may have a hard time finding a trade partner. It was just two seasons ago when they flipped him to the Los Angeles Dodgers at the deadline.
"The Tigers' right-hander has an absurd number of walks and can't seem to keep runners off the basepaths. He is the worst starting pitcher in a rotation that is lacking Tarik Skubal," Powell added. "Again, I'm not sure why any contender would trade for Flaherty, but perhaps he could get another chance on a minor-league deal if Detroit lets him walk."
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Skubal's long-term injury meant the Tigers need multiple arms in their rotation to step up in a big way.
Flaherty has not done that to this point, and his numbers and advanced metrics are more than concerning, to say the least.
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