Detroit Tigers DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

Detroit Tigers shortstop Javier Baez (back) will not start in Sunday's series finale against the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers after being removed from Saturday's contest early with a lower-back injury. The struggling Baez will now have the All-Star break to rest up and could return next Friday for the start of the second half of the season. The 31-year-old Puerto Rican infielder has declined in every year since joining the Tigers in 2022 and will finish the first half with a putrid .179/.215/.244 slash line with a .459 OPS, only one home run, 25 RBI, six stolen bases and 43 strikeouts in 214 plate appearances for Detroit. He's become unplayable in all mixed fantasy leagues and hasn't shown any signs of a turnaround. Zach McKinstry will start at shortstop on Sunday and will bat in the seven-hole to close out the first half.UPDATE: There are no immediate plans to put Baez on the injured list. Manager A.J. Hinch said Baez was in better spirits on Sunday.

Detroit Tigers second baseman Colt Keith had a huge day at the plate on Saturday, going three-for-four with four RBI while also hitting a game tying HR in the bottom of the ninth inning in the Tigers 11-9 extra innings win over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Keith's two-run shot off Evan Phillips was his ninth of the season. He also added on a two-run double to tally four RBI. Keith's OPS is now up to .706 on the season thanks to a monstrous tear in July where he has a 1.337 OPS in 42 AB. The rookie is continuing to impress and is set for a big second half. Fantasy managers that happen to find Keith on their waiver wire need to snag him up immediately. He'll look to continue his hot July against the Dodgers on Sunday, who have yet to name a scheduled starter.

Detroit Tigers outfielder Kerry Carpenter (back) has resumed light hitting. It's a positive step forward for Carpenter, who had been shut down from baseball activities for the past week or so. The 26-year-old righty masher is working his way back from a lumbar spine stress fracture in his back, and he should have a shot first at beginning a minor-league rehab assignment when play resumes in late July after the upcoming All-Star break and then returning to the Tigers before the end of the month. Before going on the 10-day injured list, Carpenter was slashing a robust .283/.342/.572 with eight home runs, 10 doubles, four triples, and 29 RBI across 163 plate appearances (50 games) as Detroit's primary right fielder and is worth stashing in all fantasy leagues.

Detroit Tigers infielders Colt Keith and Wenceel Perez are not in the team's starting lineup for Friday's series opener against the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers. Andy Ibanez is starting at second base and will bat leadoff for Detroit, with Ryan Vilade playing right field and batting ninth against Dodgers left-hander James Paxton. Vilade was recalled from Triple-A Toledo on Friday. Both Keith and Perez have been swinging hot bats for the Tigers, but they'll take the day off to kick off the weekend. Keith, a 22-year-old rookie, has been especially productive so far in July, going 13-for-37 (.351) with four home runs, two triples, nine RBI, a stolen base and 12 runs scored in 10 games. Ibanez, 31, has hit an impressive .288 (36-for-125) this year in limited playing time, but his DFS upside as a sleeper is limited because of his lack of power and speed.

Detroit Tigers right-hander Kenta Maeda has been moved to the bullpen. The Tigers will go with a bullpen day for Sunday's series finale against the visiting Los Angeles Dodgers in what would have been Maeda's next turn through the rotation, and Maeda will stay in the bullpen after next week's All-Star break. The final straw for the 36-year-old veteran was when he gave up six earned runs in just 2 2/3 innings in Tuesday's loss to the Cleveland Guardians. The soft-tossing Japanese hurler just hasn't been effective for Detroit in 2024, going 2-5 with a 7.26 ERA and 1.58 WHIP with only 50 strikeouts and 23 walks over 65 2/3 innings and 16 starts. Maeda will now most likely serve in a long-relief role for the foreseeable future, and it's unclear who might take his rotation spot to kick off the second half of the season.