3 Detroit Tigers Who Won't Return Next Season

It was two different seasons for the Detroit Tigers. The first one started on Opening Day, and ran, unremarkably and disappointingly through to August 22nd, when they were in 4th place in the AL Central, 11.5 games back, and 10.0 games back of a Wild Card berth.

From there, Detroit went on a shocking 24-10 run, capturing a Wild Card spot, and then winning that first-round series over the vaunted Houston Astros, before finally bowing out by the slimmest of margins in the ALDS in the deciding game to the Cleveland Guardians.

You know what else happened on August 22nd, the day before their season did a complete 180? Javy Baez played his last game of the season.

And that's where we begin our look at 3 Tigers that should not be returning in 2025.

Javy Baez

Could it have been more obvious? Almost precisely as Baez's season came to a merciless end going on the injured list, the Tigers' thrilling and improbable run to the ALDS began.

Baez has been a colossal bust since signing a six-year, $140 million deal in free agency in 2022. He's hit a combined .221 for the Tigers with a .610 OPS and a 71 OPS+. Things completely bottomed out in 2024, with a .184/.221/.294 slash line in 289 plate appearances with a woebegone OPS+ of 46. And his defense was far below average as well.

Will the Tigers swallow hard and buy out the remaining $73 million on his ill-fated deal? It's time to admit their mistake and eat the remainder of that albatross of a contract, and just move on.

Casey Mize

The Tigers have a club option at $3 million on Mize, but after his slide in 2024, it seems unlikely they'll pick that up. The former 1st overall pick in the June MLB Draft (2018) had an unremarkable season with a 4.49 ERA, and hasn't been a decent contributor in the rotation since 2021. His fall from grace this year went from starter to reliever at the end of September, to not being called on in the Wild Card Series, to simply not being on the roster at all in the ALDS.

Ryan Kreidler

This one is nowhere near as consequential as the previous two, but how much longer can the Tigers continue to give chances to the utility man? In small-ish samples in each of the last three seasons, Kreidler has managed to hit just .147 in a total of 150 at-bats, with an OPS+ of a puny 17. This season, in 35 games, he batted just .117 with an OPS+ of 7. Yes, seven. Even in 200+ plate appearances in the minors, he mustered only a .189 mark with a .617 OPS.