Detroit, MI
Where the Detroit Tigers stand heading into the Winter Meetings
DETROIT — Two months after the excitement and noise of the Detroit Tigers’ surprise playoff run, their offseason has been … incredibly quiet.
Such can be the nature of MLB offseasons, particularly in a year when much of the market is in a holding pattern waiting for Juan Soto to sign and other dominoes to begin their tumble.
One thing that’s clear: Rather than pressing down the accelerator, the Tigers front office appears set on remaining patient and opportunistic in constructing its 2025 roster.
But all this does not mean the team won’t make additions before the start of spring training. The Tigers enter next week’s Winter Meetings in Dallas with two key questions coming into focus: How close are they to adding a starting pitcher? And what route will they take to add needed offensive impact?
The pitching market
Here, we have movement across the league. Blake Snell signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers for five years and $182 million. The Los Angeles Angels signed Yusei Kikuchi for three years and $63 million. The New York Mets signed Frankie Montas for two years and $34 million. Old friend Matthew Boyd signed with the Chicago Cubs for two years and $29 million. Just Thursday, the Athletics agreed to terms with Luis Severino for three years and $67 million.
The Tigers are thought to again be seeking at least one starting pitcher on a one- or two-year contract. Although Max Fried and Corbin Burnes remain factors atop the market, more pitchers could begin signing rapidly over the coming days.
After a rough outing in the NLDS, Walker Buehler pitched a combined 10 scoreless innings in the NLCS and World Series. (Harry How / Getty Images)
Detroit’s most interesting options here include Walker Buehler, Michael Soroka and Andrew Heaney, among others. The Tigers might be turned off by the qualifying offers attached to others such as Nick Pivetta and Sean Manaea. Regardless, expect the Tigers to seek another high-upside arm they believe they can optimize like they did with Michael Lorenzen and Jack Flaherty over the past two seasons.
Buehler, a two-time All-Star who slumped to a 5.38 ERA last season, could be the white whale. But can the Tigers get him on a short-term deal? These are the sort of existential questions hanging around the franchise. Despite an estimated $77.6 million on the team’s books, there is little indication the Tigers are preparing to spend like anything more than, at best, a mid-market team.
The hunt for a third baseman?
For as thrilling as their fall postseason run was, the Tigers still have a long way to go. Consider the fact they ranked 29th, above only the dreadful Chicago White Sox, with a .300 team on-base percentage last season.
There is merit to Scott Harris’ previous comments about most of the Tigers’ improvements needing to come from internal development. But it would be a disservice to fans and existing players if the team does not make a meaningful attempt to bolster its lineup.
Harris has previously stated an interest in adding a right-handed bat, either an infielder or outfielder. First and third base look like the most natural fits, and the Tigers are thought to have been looking deeper at their options in recent days.
At third base, some of the options are appealing. What remains murky is whether the Tigers have any desire to compete at the top end of the market, where Alex Bregman looms as perhaps the most perfect match. Of course, courting Bregman’s services could require outbidding the likes of the incumbent Houston Astros, the New York Yankees and perhaps other teams that miss out on Soto.
If Bregman is not a realistic option, where else might the Tigers’ attention turn? There have been rumblings about an interest in Ha-Seong Kim, the San Diego Padres infielder who underwent labrum surgery in October and is expected to miss the early portion of the season. If Kim seeks a one-year pillow deal, he could be a highly interesting option. There’s also smoke surrounding Nolan Arenado, whom the St. Louis Cardinals are actively trying to trade. Arenado seems alluring and risky. The 33-year-old is an eight-time All-Star and 10-time Gold Glove winner who has dealt with minor injuries and hints of regression over the past two seasons. Arenado is due $74 million over the next three seasons, but even in a down year, he was worth 3.1 fWAR in 2024.
For Arenado to become a Tiger, he would first have to waive his no-trade clause, which could be far from a given since the Tigers would also have to believe he could overcome the lurking signs of decline: Arenado’s bat speed ranked in MLB’s 28th percentile last season. His average exit velocity was only 86.3 mph, ranking in the eighth percentile. Although he still hit .295 against fastballs, his 31.6 percent hard-hit rate was the lowest of his career. Arenado has crushed lefties for much of his career, but he has had reverse splits over the past two years, including only a .646 OPS against left-handed pitching last season, something that very much runs counter to the Tigers’ specific desire for a right-handed bat. Detroit had a team OPS of only .660 against left-handed pitching in 2024.
If the Tigers still seek a corner infielder, the Miami Marlins’ Jake Burger is another player to watch. The high-power, low-contact third baseman could add thump to the Tigers lineup but was worth only 1.4 fWAR last season.
Detroit could just as easily pursue a first baseman. Christian Walker could be the best free-agent fit. Carlos Santana or Justin Turner might be cheaper alternatives. And Yandy Díaz also exists as a potential trade target.
Even if Soto signs with a team in the coming days, the hitting market might play out slower as big names such as Bregman and Pete Alonso seek lucrative deals of their own.
But as the Tigers increase conversations with agents and opposing executives at the Winter Meetings, we might leave Dallas with a clearer picture of the team’s plans.
(Top photo of Scott Harris, A.J. Hinch and Jeff Greenberg: Junfu Han / Imagn Images)
If you need help with the Public File, call (313) 222-0566
At WDIV, we are committed to informing and delighting our audience. In our commitment to covering our communities with innovation and excellence, we incorporate Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies to enhance our news gathering, reporting, and presentation processes. Read our article to see how we are using Artificial Intelligence.
Federal regulators say the autonomous vehicle company Waymo must stop its cars from blocking first responders. Waymo has been testing its vehicles in Detroit. The head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says the agency found several cases of Waymo driver-less vehicles traveling into emergency scenes, blocking firefighters or failing to stop for flashing lights and flares. Federal regulators say they will meet with autonomous vehicle developers to devise ways to address the problem. A Waymo vehicle will stop, however, if it notices nefarious activity from kids riding in it. A Waymo car in California recently stopped in a parking lot and called police after two teens in its back seat allegedly began drinking alcohol and shooting water beads from a toy gun.
Additional headlines for Friday, July 10, 2026
Bar IX location coming soon?
Detroit’s first women’s sports bar is crowdfunding to open a permanent space. Bar IX hosts pop-up watch parties for women’s sports. The bar has raised 65 percent of if its 125-thousand-dollar goal since the campaign kicked off on June 30. Organizers are giving away merchandise such as stickers, keychains, and t-shirts with donations.
African World Festival
The African World Festival is this weekend at Hart Plaza. The festival celebrates culture and history with music, spoken word, food and a retail marketplace. The festival starts today and runs through Sunday. Visit Charles H Wright museum website at for more info and to buy tickets.
Lake St. Clair Metropark to receive updates
Lake St. Clair Metropark is getting 15 million dollars in improvements. The improvements include reopening the North Marina, expanding accessibility across the park, adding new trail connections and modernizing infrastructure. It’s the biggest investment in the park in decades. Renovations at the marina will fully reopen the marina with 78 boat slips for transient docking and bring accessible floating finger docks back to the North Marina basin. All renovations are expected to be completed by the end of summer 2027.
Detroit Riverfront tour
The Detroit Parks Coalition is hosting a free walking tour about the Detroit Riverfront tomorrow, July 11 from 10 a.m. to 11a.m. The tour will give an overview of the history of the riverfront as a well as more info on the newest Ralph C Wilson Centennial Park. Meet at the Dock, located near the Huron-Clinton Metroparks Water Garden across from the Plaza. Parking is available along Jefferson Ave, Rosa Parks, and in the nearby Bagley Mobility Hub and Assembly garages.
DETROIT (FOX 2) – Some Detroit officials are shining a light on ICE chases calling for change, saying they are too fast, too risky, and a danger to the community and everyone involved.
The backstory:
On Wednesday council members Denzel Anton McCampbell, Gabriela Santiago-Romero and Detroit Police Commissioner Victoria Camille, sent a letter addressing it to the head of the Department of Homeland Security – Markwayne Mullin.
In the letter they are demanding that ICE ends “dangerous pursuits through residential neighborhoods.”
They cited two pursuits — in May and June — where ICE sped through areas where children played, and both ended in injury.
Both individuals who were being pursued, they say, had no criminal activity – so they’re calling for an end to these chases.
McCampbell spoke about the letter and what they hope to accomplish.
“Talk about immigration law, this is not criminal law. So these chases are happening based on civil issues and endangering our community,” he said. “So we wanted to ensure that we sent a letter for accountability to Homeland Security to demand that they stop this and follow their own rules to keep our neighborhoods safe.”
In the letter, McCampbell, Santiago-Romero, and Camille call on DHS to:
- Cease vehicular pursuits
- Publicly release its most current vehicular pursuit policy
- Confirm key details regarding the May and June incidents
- Share findings from the resulting investigations
- Hold accountable any agents who break the rules.
They say that the majority of individuals targeted in the Detroit operations do not have criminal records, and that no civil immigration objective justifies high-speed chases that endanger the people being pursued, the agents involved, and innocent bystanders, homeowners, and children.
The other side:
FOX 2 reached out to the Detroit Department of Homeland Security Office requesting an interview and we are waiting to hear back.
Read the full letter below:
Dear Secretary Mullin:
We write on behalf of the residents of Detroit’s Districts 6 and 7 to demand that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) immediately stop conducting high-speed vehicular pursuits through our neighborhoods, and that the Department of Homeland Security enforce its own pursuit standards with the seriousness that human life demands. In the span of three weeks, two such pursuits in Detroit have left two people critically injured, damaged residents’ homes and property, and placed children and bystanders in mortal danger. These are not unfounded notions; they happened on our streets in front of families.
On May 19, 2026, a vehicular pursuit and crash involving ICE left Yerlys Moreno López, a Detroit asylum seeker, with a broken knee and other injuries requiring emergency surgery. On June 5, 2026, ICE confirmed its officers pursued a driver on Detroit’s west side near Whitlock Avenue and Warwick Street. The driver, Mohamd Salim Abdessamed, lost control, crashed through a residential fence and garage, was impaled by a fence post, and landed atop two parked vehicles. He was hospitalized in critical condition. The homeowner reported that her garage was knocked off its foundation, and a vehicle on her property was destroyed. According to neighbors who witnessed the event, agents operated unmarked vehicles, with only one having its emergency lights activated. At this time, it is unclear if sirens were activated.
That last detail is not a minor one. Federal regulation at 8 C.F.R. § 287.8(e) defines a lawful immigration pursuit as one carried out in a “designated pursuit vehicle.” A pursuit conducted in an unmarked vehicle without activated lights and sirens does not appear to satisfy the Department’s own regulatory definition. ICE’s own 2012 Emergency Driving Handbook further directs agents to “consider and evaluate critical safety issues posed by emergency driving, including the potential risk of death or serious physical injury to themselves, the general public, and the suspect, and should engage in emergency driving only when they determine that the seriousness of the emergency or the severity of the suspected criminal offense outweighs the risk of death or serious physical injury associated with such driving.” We have seen little evidence that such a weighing occurred in either of the Detroit incidents.
The U.S. Department of Justice discourages the use of unmarked vehicles in pursuits, precisely because of the catastrophic risk to uninvolved bystanders. Most American police departments, including Detroit, prohibit chases for non-violent offenses and permit them only to prevent an imminent threat of death or serious bodily harm. It is indefensible that federal agents operating on the same residential streets should hold themselves to a lower standard of public safety than the local police who patrol those blocks every day. The overwhelming majority of individuals targeted in these Detroit operations have no criminal record. No civil immigration objective justifies driving a vehicle at high speed past a park where children are playing.
Accordingly, we demand that the Department take the following actions:
1. Immediately direct ICE and HSI personnel operating in Detroit and across the nation to cease vehicular pursuits in residential and populated areas except where there is an imminent threat of death or serious bodily injury to a person, consistent with best practices.
2. Confirm in writing whether the agents involved in the May 19 and June 5, 2026, Detroit pursuits complied with 8 C.F.R. § 287.8(e), including the requirement that pursuits be conducted in designated vehicles with activated emergency lights and sirens, and whether unmarked vehicles were used in either pursuit.
3. Publicly release the current ICE and HSI vehicular pursuit policy, as the most recent publicly available guidance dates to 2012.
4. Provide the complete findings of the Department’s investigations into both Detroit incidents, including any after-action review, supervisory authorization records, and any disciplinary or corrective measures taken.
5. Commit to a binding pursuit and use-of-force standard that requires supervisory authorization, prohibits pursuits for non-violent civil immigration matters, and holds agents accountable when they violate it.
Detroit is a community that looks out for its neighbors, and we will not accept a regime in which federal agents treat our streets as a place where bystanders, homeowners, and children are acceptable collateral. The next pursuit may not end with injuries but with a funeral. I urge you to act before it does, and I request a written response within fourteen (14) days of receipt of this letter.
Respectfully,
Denzel Anton McCampbell
Council Member, District 7
Detroit City Council Gabriela Santiago-Romero
Council Member, District 6
Detroit City Council
Victoria Camille
Police Commissioner, District 7
Detroit Board of Police Commissioners
Cc:
The Honorable Rashida Tlaib, U.S. House of Representatives (MI-12)
The Honorable Shri Thanedar, U.S. House of Representatives (MI-13)
The Honorable Gary Peters, United States Senate (MI)
The Honorable Elissa Slotkin, United States Senate (MI)
Watch FOX 2 Detroit Live:
The Source: Information for this report is from an interview with Denzel Anton McCampbell and the letter sent to DHS.
-
Detroit, MI4 minutes agoMetro Detroit weather forecast, July 10, 2026 — 11 p.m. Update
-
San Francisco, CA14 minutes agoClassical music series helps reconnect downtown San Francisco community
-
Dallas, TX19 minutes agoDallas police officers, paramedics recall saving woman stuck in a ravine for days;
-
Boston, MA29 minutes agoRed Sox win 7th straight game just hours after landing in New York
-
Denver, CO34 minutes agoOne tree at a time: Denver nonprofit works to close shade gap as heat dome threatens neighborhoods
-
Seattle, WA41 minutes agoVIDEO: West Seattle Summer Fest 2026 day 1, evening report
-
San Diego, CA44 minutes agoThe World’s Number One Wellness Retreat is Right in Our Backyard
-
Milwaukee, WI49 minutes agoFestivalgoers say Milwaukee’s summer events fill a gap in downtown entertainment
