In what appears to be a move to make room on the roster for newly signed Drew Anderson, the Tigers sent right-hander Chase Lee to Toronto in exchange for left-hander Johan Simon.
Detroit has shown a clear pattern in its recent transactions. Including Wednesday’s Rule 5 draft, the Tigers have targeted relievers exclusively. Aside from the re-signing of Kyle Finnegan, all of the additions have been minor league signings, including catcher Tomas Nido, the only positional player so far.
Below is the list of those moves. Players selected in the Rule 5 draft are noted in bold.
RHP Tanney Rainey (resigned with team)
RHP Cole Waites (invitation to spring training)
RHP Matt Seelinger (resigned with the ballclub, with invite to spring training)
RHP Yendy Gomez
RHP John Stankiewicz
RHP Jan Carbello
RHP Luke Taggart
The 24-year native of La Romana, Dominican Republic, Simon moved up three levels last season, making his Double-A debut. According to his scouting report, Simon mixes three pitches in, a sinker, slider and changeup. The sinker and slider see a majority of his usage and the combination helped him run a 64% groundball rate in 2025. Simon is a future middle reliever with elite groundball-generating abilities.
In 71 innings, Simon finished the season with an ERA of 3.42, a WHIP of 1.35 and K per 9 of 10.01.
Diving into his numbers more, his fastball averages 94MPH in Single-A Dunedin with a whiff rate of 26.4%. Combine that with a changeup whiff rate of 53.5% and you have a guy who can go north to south well. The Tigers have a lefty who is similar in their system now in Gabriel Reyes, but it looks like Simon's arm angle is slightly higher.
From Andrew Chafin to Chase Lee to…
Lee originally joined the Tigers as part of the 2024 trade that sent reliever Andrew Chafin to the Texas Rangers. He made his major league debut on April 22, 2025, marking his first appearance at the big league level with Detroit.
The right-hander was used primarily as bullpen depth and retained minor league options, giving the Tigers roster flexibility as they managed injuries and workloads across their pitching staff. Lee provided Detroit with a different look out of the pen with his submarine style delivery.
It's Been A Long December and It's Easy To Believe
As the final weeks of December approach, Detroit is expected to continue evaluating its roster, with third base remaining an area of uncertainty. The Tigers have internal options but could still explore external additions as they look to solidify the infield before spring training, particularly with an eye toward depth and defensive stability.
At the same time, speculation around the pitching staff persists. Recent reports have linked the New York Mets to ace Tarik Skubal, though no deal appears imminent. With teams across the league still assessing needs, Skubal’s name is likely to remain part of the offseason conversation as the calendar turns toward the new year. The Mets this week lost Pete Alonzo to Baltimore and Edwin Diaz to the Dodgers so perhaps they are debating what to do next.
Follow me on "X" @rogcastbaseball and check out the rest of our Rountable crew on the Lions, Pistons, Red Wings and all things Michigan and MIchigan State!