Tigers Add Vet Smith, Option De Jesus

0:00It's April 22nd. Welcome in. This is MLB News Today, where the game meets AI. I'm Cory with the story. The Detroit Tigers just made it official at 3.45pm. They've selected the contract of right-hander Birch Smith, an optioned lefty and manual. Day Jesus to Triple A Toledo. To clear a spot on the 40-man roster, they transferred left-hander Bailey Horn to the 60-day injured list, retroactive to his original placement, so he's eligible to return late May. Early reports around 2.45pm had Smith already getting a locker in the clubhouse, signaling the move was coming fast. Horn had been rehabbing from elbow surgery, but shut down after a couple minor league outings this month. Smith's a mid-30s vet, who's debuted in the majors over a decade ago, but his big league time is light under 200 innings with a rough 6.0.3, ERA, through 2021. He bounced to Japan and South Korea for a couple years, then returned stateside in 2024 with the Marlins and Orioles posting

1:04a 4.95, ERA and 56 innings. Lately, he's turning heads after a strong winter ballston in the Dominican Republic, 1.76 ERA, striking out nearly a third of batters. Faced. That carried into spring training and Triple A this year, with strikeout rates over 29 and even 44%. If Smith brings that heat to the majors, it could be a sneaky win for the Tigers' bullpen. With 5 years of service time, though, they can't just send him down without his OK, so it's all or nothing up here.