Right-handed pitcher Jack Flaherty, one of the youngest starting pitchers and top arms left in free agency, has reportedly agreed to a two-year, $35 million deal with the Detroit Tigers. The news came late last evening.

Shortly before baseball media members broke the news, Flaherty hinted at the deal with a miniature slew of posts on X, including a GIF of fellow Tigers starter Tarik Skubal and a picture of Flaherty in a Tigers uniform.

The contract, which includes an opt-out after 2025, will pay him $25 million this upcoming season. Additionally, if he makes at least 15 starts this season, his 2026 salary can go from $10 million to $20 million (given he does not opt-out after the first year).

Flaherty, who had his first bout with free agency last season, already has familiarity with Detroit as he signed a one-year “prove it” deal with the organization last December. He posted a 2.95 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, 3.12 FIP, and an 11.2 K/9 through 18 starts with the Tigers. He also owned a minuscule 1.6 BB/9, the lowest mark of his career.

Several games below .500 around the trade deadline, the Tigers decided to trade Flaherty to the Los Angeles Dodgers, a team that lost numerous starting pitchers due to injury last season. Flaherty went 6-2 over 10 starts with the Dodgers to finish the season, holding a 3.58 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, and a 9.9 K/9 during that stretch. During L.A.’s run to the World Series, he also made five postseason starts, but he allowed 18 earned runs over 22 innings pitched.

The former first-round pick started his big league career with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2017. He exceeded rookie status in 2018, finishing 5th in National League Rookie of the Year voting. The following year, Flaherty flourished with a 2.75 ERA and NL-best 0.97 WHIP through 33 starts, finishing fourth in NL Cy Young voting, as well as receiving MVP votes.

Flaherty struggled to get back to that level for the next several seasons, and he fought oblique and shoulder injuries between 2021 and 2023. Not only was last season the most prosperous he had been since his early campaigns in St. Louis, but more importantly, it marked the second consecutive season that he avoided an IL stint. If you called last year’s deal a “prove it” deal for Flaherty, this one may classify as a “prove it again” contract for him. His health is probably the biggest reason for the aforementioned $10 million incentive bonus he could get in 2026, as the Yankees walked back a trade at the deadline last year over medical concerns.

Flaherty joins 37-year-old Alex Cobb as the two starting pitchers that Detroit has acquired in free agency this winter. They both will join 2024 AL Cy Young Tarik Skubal in the Tigers’ rotation, with Casey Mize, Kenta Maeda, Reese Olson, and Keider Montero likely competing for the final rotation spots. Because of the trade last season, Flaherty is not tied to a qualifying offer.

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