The Los Angeles Dodgers were not able to keep everybody from their World Series roster, much to the delight of the Detroit Tigers.
The Tigers have agreed to sign starting pitcher Jack Flaherty to a 2-year deal worth $35 million. According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the contract is expected to pay Flaherty $25 million this coming season and includes a $10 million player option for next season.
The 29-year-old Flaherty’s 2026 player option reportedly rises to $20 million if he starts at least 15 games this coming season.
Flaherty was in the midst of a career year before the Tigers traded him to the Dodgers ahead of the trade deadline. The 6’4″ right-hander had a 2.95 ERA and averaged a stellar 11.2 strikeouts per 9 innings in his 18 starts for Detroit. Only NL Cy Young winner Chris Sale (11.4) had a higher strikeouts-per-9 rate in the majors than Flaherty last season.
The Tigers may have been keeping tabs on their own Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal’s wishlist. During last week’s 100th Annual New York Baseball Writer’s Dinner, the Tigers ace expressed how much he wanted Flaherty back on the team.
“If there’s a guy I want on the mound that’s not me on our team, I want [Flaherty] on the mound,” Skubal said.
"If there's a guy I want on the mound that's not me, I want him."
Tarik Skubal said he'd love to have Jack Flaherty back on the Tigers. pic.twitter.com/881RSfBuGg
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) February 2, 2025
Flaherty’s effectiveness waned once he joined the Dodgers. His ERA rose to 3.58 over 10 starts during the regular season. His ERA bloated even further in the playoffs with a postseason ERA of 7.36 in his 5 starts.
But to Flaherty’s credit, the Dodgers won both of his starts during the 2024 World Series. He was even named the Dodgers’ surprise starter in Game 1 opposite New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole.
With the Dodgers adding three Cy Young contenders to their rotation in 2025, it was nice of them to leave some quality pitching for the reason of MLB.
