1 month agoDetroit Tigers starting pitcher
Kenta Maeda could have a path to opening the season in the starting rotation with
Alex Cobb (hip) set to miss a month of action. Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic noted that the team could give the veteran right-hander a look in spring training with the open spot in the rotation. Last season, Maeda appeared in 29 games but only started 17 of them. Across 112 1/3 total frames, the 36-year-old posted a disappointing 6.09 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. However, the right-hander worked on his mechanics during the offseason in hopes of returning to form. During the 2023 campaign, Maeda held a 4.23 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP across a similar 104 1/3 innings of work. Fantasy managers should monitor his progress during spring training as he will likely compete alongside
Casey Mize and top prospect
Jackson Jobe for a starting role. If he does earn the job, he could be worth a look in deeper AL-only formats.
--Andy Smith - RotoBallerSource: Cody Stavenhagen
2 months agoWith Detroit Tigers pitchers
Casey Mize,
Keider Montero and
Brant Hurter each having cases to begin the year in the starting rotation in 2025, it has made veteran right-hander
Kenta Maeda's role less clear. The Athletic's Cody Stavenhagen writes that the Tigers have talked about revamping Maeda's offseason plan to help him recapture what has made him successful after he had an ugly 6.09 ERA in 2024. Despite the fact that Maeda was better as a reliever (4.44 ERA) in 2024, the Tigers could take one more shot with him as a starter since they will be paying him $10 million. Another option for Detroit would be using the 36-year-old Japanese hurler as a swing man. That or Maeda being used strictly out of the bullpen is looking much more likely now after the Tigers reunited with right-hander
Jack Flaherty on Sunday. Maeda had a career-worst 7.69 K/9 last year and should be avoided in most fantasy drafts this spring.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: The Athletic - Cody Stavenhagen
8 months agoDetroit Tigers starting pitcher
Kenta Maeda had one of his best outings of the year on Thursday, going 5 ⅔ innings of shutout ball against the Seattle Mariners. Maeda came in after opener
Alex Faedo allowed a run in the first inning, but the veteran shut down the M's into the seventh, keeping his team in the game and eventually giving them a chance to grab a 2-1 win. Maeda looked very sharp in this one, allowing just one hit and one walk while punching out five. Although he's had some decent appearances recently, Maeda is tough to trust on a start-to-start basis because he often has an opener used in front of him and doesn't pitch deep into games. He will have to show more outings like this one to even be streamer-worthy in fantasy.
--Matt Garon - RotoBallerSource: MLB.com
9 months agoDetroit Tigers right-hander
Kenta Maeda has been moved to the bullpen. The Tigers will go with a bullpen day for Sunday's series finale against the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers in what would have been Maeda's next turn through the rotation, and Maeda will stay in the bullpen after next week's All-Star break. The final straw for the 36-year-old veteran was when he gave up six earned runs in just 2 2/3 innings in Tuesday's loss to the Cleveland Guardians. The soft-tossing Japanese hurler just hasn't been effective for Detroit in 2024, going 2-5 with a 7.26 ERA and 1.58 WHIP with only 50 strikeouts and 23 walks over 65 2/3 innings and 16 starts. Maeda will now most likely serve in a long-relief role for the foreseeable future, and it's unclear who might take his rotation spot to kick off the second half of the season.
--Keith Hernandez - RotoBallerSource: Detroit News - Chris McCosky
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