The Tigers announced that right-hander Matt Wisler was released from his minor league contract with the club. Wisler signed in February but hadn’t received a call-up to the majors, and he has a 4.40 ERA over 47 innings with Triple-A Toledo.
Digging deeper into the numbers, Wisler had a 25.2% strikeout rate and 12.4% walk rate in Toledo, and the spike in walks stands out considering that Wisler had a very solid 7.6BB% over his 507 1/3 career innings in the big leagues. The Tigers simply never felt compelled to see what Wisler could contribute to their big league bullpen, and thus the 30-year-old will again hit the open market.
The Rays designated Wisler for assignment last September, and after he chose free agency rather than accept an outright assignment, he stayed unsigned until landing with Detroit in mid-February. With the trade deadline now passed and teams having fewer avenues to make additions, there’s bound to be some interest in a pitcher who has a 2.59 ERA over 118 MLB innings since the start of the 2021 season.
Wisler has bounced around from the Twins to the Giants to the Rays to the Tigers over the last four seasons, with clubs looking beyond the surface ERA to some red flags. For instance, Wisler also had a high walk rate over 25 innings with the Twins in 2020, and he benefited greatly from a .198 BABIP in 2022 that helped mask a lot of hard contact and a velocity on both his fastball and slider. His performance in Toledo might not have exactly calmed any doubts about his ability to again thrive at the MLB level, but it will be interesting to monitor what teams might make a play for his services.