ANAHEIM, Calif. — The Detroit Tigers designated Kenta Maeda for assignment Thursday, marking the end of a frustrating year-plus stint for the veteran right-hander.
Maeda, 37, was signed to a two-year, $24 million deal by the Tigers in November 2023, then proceeded to post a 6.21 ERA in 36 appearances spanning 120⅓ innings over his two seasons with Detroit. This year, he allowed eight runs (seven earned) on nine hits and six walks in eight innings out of the bullpen.
“It’s tough,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said of parting ways with Maeda. “When he was good, he really helped us. And when he struggled, we really didn’t get him back on track. And so it’s a frustrating end to his time here. We do want to create opportunity for the young players and young pitchers we’re really excited about.”
The Tigers called up Tyler Owens, a 24-year-old right-handed reliever, to take Maeda’s spot on the roster.
Maeda came over from Japan in his late 20s and established himself as a weapon in the rotation and out of the bullpen with the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2016 to 2019, posting a 3.87 ERA in 137 games during the regular season and a 3.31 ERA in 24 appearances in the playoffs. Maeda then posted a 2.70 ERA and finished second in American League Cy Young Award voting while with the Minnesota Twins in the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season.
But his ERA ballooned to 4.66 in 2021. He spent the 2022 season recovering from Tommy John surgery, posted a 4.23 ERA in 21 games (20 starts) in 2023 and hardly got right upon going to Detroit the following season.
Maeda’s ERA stood at 7.26 on July 9, 2024, prompting a transition to the bullpen. His stuff played up, triggering some initial success, but consistency continued to elude him. The Tigers were encouraged by how he looked in spring training this year, but his struggles continued once the regular season began.
Hinch and Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris met with Maeda at the team hotel Thursday morning to inform him they were essentially moving on.
“I just think it was a frustrating time for him,” Hinch said. “We couldn’t get him on track, and he couldn’t get himself on track. And that is a bad combo. We’ve had a lot of success stories here with guys who have gotten better. But unfortunately, we couldn’t get this one going.”
Detroit has seven days to trade or release Maeda, or the Tigers could send him outright to the minors if he clears waivers. Maeda, however, could refuse a minor league assignment because of his service time and instead choose to become a free agent.
Owens, whose fastball sits at 96-98 mph, went 0-1 with a 4.50 ERA in 12 games for Toledo, striking out 11 and walking nine in 14 innings.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
