Detroit Tigers DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

Detroit Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson has been a nice surprise for this offense early in the season. Torkelson continued his success at the plate during Saturday's game against the Minnesota Twins. The 25-year-old smacked a two-run home run off Kody Funderburk in the sixth inning to help extend the lead. Torkelson would finish his day 2-for-3 with a homer, three RBI, and two runs scored in the victory. He's slashing .314/.419/.647 with four home runs and 10 RBI this season. He's red-hot right now so fantasy managers should take advantage of it while they can.

Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Jackson Jobe spun six scoreless innings against the struggling Twins to earn the first victory of his MLB career. Jobe pitched well in his first two starts but got a pair of no-decisions against the Mariners and White Sox while allowing five earned runs in nine innings with seven strikeouts. He was much better on Saturday in Minneapolis and needed only 87 pitches to record 18 outs in his first quality start and his first MLB win. The Tigers have won nine of their last 11 games to climb to the top spot in the AL Central, and Jobe will look to build on this victory when he takes the mound next Thursday at home against the Royals.

Detroit Tigers second baseman Gleyber Torres and catcher Dillon Dingler will both take a seat for Saturday's contest against the division-rival Minnesota Twins at Target Field. Torres made his return from the injured from a minor oblique strain for Friday's series opener against the Twins and went 2-for-4 with a walk in the 7-6 win. He's hit well in his first three games with the Tigers this year, going 5-for-11 with a homer, an RBI and a stolen base. Colt Keith shifts to second base and is hitting fifth, while Tomas Nido is doing the catching for rookie right-hander Jackson Jobe and is hitting ninth against Twins right-hander Chris Paddack. Spencer Torkelson is at first base and is batting third. With Jake Rogers (oblique) out at least a month, Dingler has become Detroit's primary backstop. Nido is hitless in three career at-bats against Paddack and should be avoided in DFS.

Detroit Tigers outfielder Parker Meadows (arm) is still not throwing but resumed his hitting program on Friday. Meadows continues to work his way back from a nerve issue in his right arm. The 25-year-old was placed on the 60-day injured list in March and is not expected to return to action until May at the earliest. Meadows was shut down from throwing for four weeks in mid-March, and if the timeline stays intact, he could be cleared to throw by next weekend. The former second-round pick slashed .244/.310/.433 with nine home runs, 28 RBI, 39 runs, and nine stolen bases over 82 games in 2024. Fantasy managers should continue to stash Meadows on the injured list, as he's trending in the right direction and will return sometime in May.

Detroit Tigers left-hander Brant Hurter picked up a save in his team's 5-0 win over the New York Yankees on Tuesday. Hurter pitched the final three innings of the game while allowing no runs, walking one, and striking out three. The veteran hurler has now earned two saves this season, to go along with a 3.68 ERA and six strikeouts over 7 1/3 innings of work. Despite the two saves, Hurter is not the Tigers' primary closer, so he does not look like a priority waiver add at the moment.