Bullpen expert breaks down Detroit Tigers targets at MLB trade deadline
Bullpen expert Greg Jewett joins “Days of Roar,” discussing the Detroit Tigers and the reliever market before the MLB trade deadline, set for July 31.
The Detroit Tigers won again.
The Tigers — led by rookie right-hander Troy Melton in his second MLB start — created momentum Monday, July 28, securing back-to-back wins after losing 12 of 13 games.
Melton completed seven scoreless innings.
The Tigers rode Melton’s performance to a 5-1 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks in the opener of a three-game series at Comerica Park, scoring all five runs off Diamondbacks left-hander (and ex-Tiger) Eduardo Rodríguez.
With the victory, the Tigers (62-46) put themselves in the win column for two games in a row for the first time since July 7-8 against the Tampa Bay Rays, part of a five-game winning streak.
The Tigers recently added Melton to their starting rotation, replacing Keider Montero — and Melton rewarded the Tigers with seven scoreless innings.
He allowed just five hits, and he didn’t issue a walk.
Melton struck out five batters: Eugenio Suárez with a slider in the first inning, Adrian Del Castillo with a fastball and Tristin English with a fastball in the second inning, and Jose Herrera with a slider and Geraldo Perdomo with a cutter in the sixth inning.
All five strikeouts were swinging.
Melton showcased that his four-seam fastball (along with his slider) is capable of missing bats, that he can throw his primary pitches for strikes, and that he can limit damage against left-handed hitters — three keys to success.
It was another successful MLB start.
He generated 11 whiffs on 47 swings for a 23.4% whiff rate, but five whiffs were from his fastball and four whiffs were from his slider. His fastball averaged 97.1 mph, maxing out at 98.6 mph. The D-Backs still made hard contact against him, averaging a 94.2 mph exit velocity on 19 balls in play.
The Diamondbacks scored on Alek Thomas’ solo home run off a changeup from right-handed reliever Tommy Kahnle in the eighth inning.
The changeup caught too much of the middle of the strike zone.
But it was the D-Backs’ only run.
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Andy Ibáñez returns
The Tigers recalled infielder Andy Ibáñez — a right-handed hitter who thrives against left-handed pitchers — from Triple-A Toledo before Monday’s game.
He was brought back for two reasons: Parker Meadows landed on the injured list, and the Tigers were preparing to face three left-handed starters in their next six games.
The stretch of lefties began Monday with Rodríguez from the Diamondbacks.
Ibáñez didn’t waste any time making an impact at the plate against Rodríguez, hitting a double in the second inning and a solo home run in the fourth inning.
The homer put the Tigers ahead, 3-0.
The Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the first inning on Spencer Torkelson’s single that the Diamondbacks misplayed in the outfield, then extended the advantage to 2-0 in the second inning on Javier Báez’s single. A Matt Vierling double made it 4-0 in the fourth, and a Dillon Dingler homer pushed the margin to 5-0 in the sixth.
What happened to E-Rod?
Rodríguez — who pitched for the Tigers from 2022-23 — allowed five runs on eight hits and two walks with five strikeouts across six innings, throwing 95 pitches.
It was another bad start for Rodríguez.
The 32-year-old has a 5.63 ERA in 18 starts in 2025.
After opting out of his contract with the Tigers, Rodríguez entered free agency and signed a four-year, $80 million contract with the Diamondbacks in December 2023.
Since then, Rodríguez has a 5.33 ERA in 27 starts.
Contact Evan Petzold at [email protected] or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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