Left-handed reliever Andrew Chafin, the most reliable member of the Detroit Tigers‘ bullpen last season, returned to Comerica Park over the weekend with the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The 32-year-old could have stayed with the Tigers, but this past November, he declined his player option that would have paid him $6.5 million for the 2023 season in search of a multi-year guaranteed contract as a free agent.
Chafin eventually wanted to return the Tigers, a product of an underwhelming experience in free agency, and although the two sides were in communication, president of baseball operations Scott Harris didn’t make the best offer. As a result, Chafin signed with the Diamondbacks.
“I would have been happy to come back,” said Chafin, who posted a 2.83 ERA across 64 games in 2022. “At that point in time, it became strictly a business decision. We made the best decision that we could at that point in time.”
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Manager A.J. Hinch, who helped the Tigers (under former general manager Al Avila) in their pursuit of Chafin before the 2022 season, didn’t want to see his former high-leverage reliever take the mound at Comerica Park, just like he didn’t want to face Philadelphia Phillies left-handed reliever Gregory Soto, another ex-Tiger, in the previous series at Citizens Bank Park.
“It was a great year for him, and he stabilized a lot of things down in the bullpen,” Hinch said, reflecting on Chafin’s 2022 campaign. “I’ve talked to their pitching coach, Brent Strom, about him a little bit. He’s a stabilizing factor. He’s going to throw strikes. He’s going to be able to post virtually every day. He handles righties, handles lefties. … Similar to Soto last series, if we don’t see him, that’s fine by me.”
Soto didn’t pitch against the Tigers from June 5-8, but Chafin received the opportunity in the ninth inning of Sunday’s series finale after the Diamondbacks scored four runs in the top of the ninth off right-hander Jason Foley.
Chafin entered to protect a 7-5 lead.
He faced three batters: Andy Ibáñez ripped a leadoff triple, Spencer Torkelson lined out, and Kerry Carpenter walked on four pitches. The Diamondbacks replaced Chafin with righty reliever Scott McGough, who retired the next two batters, stranded the runners and completed the sweep of the Tigers.
“I had a great time here,” Chafin said of his 2022 season with the Tigers. “It was fun, obviously, aside from wins and losses, but it was a great group of guys. I definitely enjoyed that.”
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Despite Sunday’s rocky performance, Chafin — whose family lives on a farm near Massillon, Ohio — has been stellar for the Diamondbacks through 29 appearances this season. He owns a 3.18 ERA with nine walks and 35 strikeouts in 22⅔ innings, plus eight saves in 10 chances.
Entering the offseason, his combined 4.9 fWAR ranked 19th among 114 relievers with at least 200 innings since the 2017 season. He was worth 0.9 fWAR with the Tigers in 2022 and is already worth 0.7 fWAR with the Diamondbacks in 2023.
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On Feb. 11, the Diamondbacks signed Chafin to a one-year, $5.5 million contract for the 2023 season (and $1 million in incentives for making at least 55 appearances) with a $7.25 million club option (or a $750,000 buyout) for the 2024 season.
He would likely be a Tiger right now if Harris put the same offer on the table.
But that didn’t happen.
“At that point in time, everything strictly became a business to me,” said Chafin, who turns 33 on Saturday. “Going through free agency is a pain in the butt anymore. There was a little bit of talk, but nothing really came of it between me and Detroit in the offseason. So, here I am.”
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold.