The Tigers announced they have selected the contracts of right-hander Brenan Hanifee and left-hander Sean Guenther. They also reinstated shortstop Javier Báez from the medical emergency/bereavement list. They will take the open roster spots of Jack Flaherty, Mark Canha and Andrew Chafin, who were all traded away on deadline day. Evan Woodbery of MLive Media Group relayed the news about Hanifee on X prior to the official announcement. Chris McCosky of the Detroit News relayed Guenther’s selected earlier on X.
Hanifee, 26, got a brief look in the majors last year. The Tigers selected his contract in September and he tossed five innings over three appearances, allowing three earned runs. He was non-tendered at the end of the season but then re-signed with the club on a minor league deal.
This year, he has tossed 47 innings over 34 Triple-A appearances. He has allowed 5.17 earned runs per nine innings but he has likely deserved much better. His 26% strikeout rate, 6.9% walk rate and 56.1% ground ball this year are all strong marks. If it weren’t for a .315 batting average on balls in play and 61.6% strand rate, which are both on the unlucky side, fewer runs would have crossed the plate. His 3.86 FIP is more than a run better than his ERA and perhaps a better reflection of his performance this year.
With the trades of Flaherty and Chafin, as well as recent injuries to Reese Olson, Casey Mize and Matt Manning, the Tigers could have some rope for Hanifee, especially since he’s been averaging more than an inning per appearance in Triple-A this year. He still has a full slate of options and just a few days of service time, so he could stick around on their roster for a while if the Tigers so choose.
Guenther, 28, made 14 appearances for the Marlins in 2021 with a 9.30 ERA. He underwent Tommy John surgery in April of 2022 and spent that entire season on the injured list before being claimed off waivers by the Tigers in November. He was outrighted off the roster shortly thereafter and has been with the Tigers in a non-roster capacity for almost two years now.
He has thrown 95 minor league innings in that time with a 3.69 ERA, 26.9% strikeout rate, 6.5% walk rate. He had a 47.1% ground ball rate at Triple-A last year and has a 55.5% rate at that level this year. Like Hanifee, he has a full slate of options but his service time clock is over the one-year mark, due to spending all of 2022 on the IL.