4 months ago
- Tigers
- Updated: Jan. 05, 2026, 8:58 a.m.
- Published: Jan. 05, 2026, 8:58 a.m.
DETROIT -- Five pitchers designated for duty by nan Detroit Tigers successful November person been re-signed to minor-league contracts.
Left-hander Sean Guenther and right-handers Jack Little, Tyler Mattison and Dugan Darnell person agreed to minor-league pacts complete nan past respective weeks.
Right-hander Tanner Rainey quickly re-signed successful precocious November.
The only 1 of nan six players DFA’d who yet near nan statement was besides nan only 1 who signed a major-league contract: right-hander Jason Foley, who joined nan San Francisco Giants.
Darnell, 28, is simply a Northville autochthonal who played astatine Adrian College but didn’t commencement pitching until his elder year. He made his big-league debut successful 2025 for nan Colorado Rockies and was claimed disconnected waivers by nan Pirates aft nan season.
Guenther, 30, was a cardinal portion of nan Tigers’ playoff bullpen successful 2024 but his 2025 run ne'er sewage connected way owed to injuries.
He went 3-0 pinch a 0.86 ERA successful 21 innings down nan agelong for nan Tigers successful 2024. In nan seventh inning of Game 2 of nan Wild Card Series astatine Houston, he sewage Kyle Tucker to crushed into a 4-6-3 double play to extremity a threat, possibly nan astir consequential outs of nan series.
But Guenther battled injuries and had much mixed results successful 2025, allowing six earned runs connected 10 hits successful 10 1/3 innings during his stint astatine nan big-league level. He underwent near hep arthroscopic room past June.
Mattison, 26, was added to nan 40-man roster aft nan 2024 season moreover though he was still rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. He yet sounded 39 innings successful nan insignificant leagues successful 2025 but battled power issues and ne'er sewage an MLB call-up.
Little, who turns 28 this week, was claimed disconnected waivers by nan Tigers connected Nov. 6. He was selected by nan Los Angeles Dodgers successful nan 5th information of nan 2019 draught retired of Stanford University, wherever he is nan program’s all-time saves leader.
Little made his MLB debut successful June, pitching successful 2 games for nan Dodgers earlier being claimed disconnected waivers by nan Pittsburgh Pirates successful August. He vanished nan play pinch Triple-A Indianapolis.
He throws a fastball, slider and split-finger. In 62 innings astatine Triple-A successful 2025, he posted a 4.64 ERA pinch 53 strikeouts and 22 walks.
TIGERS’ NOTABLE MINOR-LEAGUE SIGNINGS
- RHP Tanner Rainey (re-signed)
- C Tomas Nido (re-signed)
- RHP Matt Seelinger (re-signed)
- RHP Cole Waites
- RHP Scott Effross
- RHP Dylan File
- RHP Inohan Paniagua
- LHP Enmanuel De Jesus
- LHP Carlos Peña
- RHP Tyler Mattison (re-signed)
- RHP Woo-Suk Go (re-signed)
- RHP Jack Little (re-signed)
- LHP Sean Guenther (re-signed)
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Evan Woodbery has covered nan Detroit Tigers and Major League Baseball for MLive.com since 2016. He has antecedently covered nan Saints/NFL for The Times-Picayune/NOLA.com; University of Tennessee athletics for...
