The MLB trade deadline will be a pivotal time in the season for the Detroit Tigers. While the team sits atop the MLB world, there are still plenty of issues the team can address. Adding a player like Eugenio Suarez is appealing, but the Tigers have a major issue elsewhere on the roster.
According to Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic, the Tigers need to address their bullpen and will at the trade deadline. Detroit can't go into the postseason with their current bullpen, so a trade is likely coming later this July.
"The Tigers will likely add a leverage reliever," Stavenhagen writes, "Perhaps more than one, at the trade deadline."
Every trade deadline, there are always plenty of reliever options on the market. This season, the Tigers will be heavily involved in that market.
But what makes this report so interesting for Detroit is that the team is potentially going to add multiple arms in the bullpen. Instead of landing on just one reliever, the Tigers could add multiple.
MORE: Tigers 'strongly interested' in pair of Twins righty relievers
With both Will Vest and Tommy Kahnle, the top two relievers in Detroit, being right-handed pitchers, the Tigers should be on the lookout for a lefty arm in the bullpen.
Some options fit that description, but even if the Tigers identify one that they want to land, they'll have some tough competition.
"The trade market for relief pitching will also be competitive." Stavenhagen writes. "The potential for a small number of sellers might mean prices will be at a premium."
With a smaller market of sellers, every reliever on the block would increase in value. While the Tigers have a strong farm system and could beat out their competition, the price would increase, and make whatever acquisition sting a little bit more.
But, regardless of how the trade deadline pans out, the Tigers are expected to land at least one reliever at the deadline.
Detroit has a great chance to compete for a World Series this season, and capitalizing on such a window by landing a reliever at the deadline would be a great move for the Tigers to make to increase their World Series odds and bolster a bullpen that has struggled lately.
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