Than winning the season series against both teams in the WS

Also fuck Cleveland.

With foundational stars set, Detroit must address lingering inconsistency. These three power hitters could stabilize the grass and ignite an offense desperate for reliable righty production.

The infield is the biggest puzzle the Detroit Tigers need to solve heading into next season. What is their best path forward?

Are these authentic Tiger Stadium seats?

Am I really rooting for Cleveland right now? How did I get here?
8x10” oil on canvas

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TB 3 @ CLE 1 - Bottom 9, 2 Outs

^{Last Updated: 10/18/2026 7:58:10 PM EDT}

The veteran Gold Glover brings elite game-calling expertise to Detroit, offering the breakout rookie a roadmap to refine his defensive tools and master the art of pitcher management.

The Detroit Tigers will have a decision to make on Kenley Jansen after the World Series, but the bigger bullpen question goes beyond whether he returns for 2027. Detroit holds a $12 million club option on Jansen with a $2 million buyout, and after an uneven first season with the Tigers, the organization could easily decide to move on and look elsewhere for the ninth inning.

MLB.com has already identified the closer situation as one of Detroit’s major offseason questions, with David Bednar and Pete Fairbanks among the possible late-inning options available. Replacing Jansen alone, however, would not solve the entire problem because the Tigers need to rebuild the structure of the bullpen, not just change the name attached to the ninth inning.

For much of A.J. Hinch’s tenure in Detroit, the bullpen has been built around flexibility. Hinch has often preferred using his best relievers based on matchup and situation rather than locking everyone into traditional seventh-, eighth- and ninth-inning roles, but that approach only works when there are enough pitchers capable of handling high-leverage innings.

That is where Detroit needs more help, especially if the goal is to build a bullpen capable of holding up over an entire season. A closer can protect a lead in the ninth, but he cannot fix a relief corps if Hinch has limited options getting through the seventh and eighth.

The Brewers provided a good reminder of that during their National League Championship Series sweep of the Dodgers. Milwaukee’s bullpen retired all 15 batters it faced in Game 2, then continued playing a major role throughout the series as the Brewers advanced to their first World Series since 1982.

Milwaukee did not reach the World Series because it had one pitcher capable of recording three outs at the end of a game. The Brewers had multiple arms capable of getting important outs before the ninth inning ever arrived, and that should be part of Detroit’s thinking this winter.

If the Tigers decline Jansen’s option, signing another established closer would make sense. Bednar and Fairbanks are obvious names because both have extensive experience working late innings, while Detroit reportedly had interest in Bednar previously before the prospect cost became more than the Tigers were willing to pay.

The Tigers should be looking beyond one acquisition, however, because this bullpen needs more than one dependable arm. Detroit needs another reliable high-leverage right-hander, pitchers who can work on consecutive days and enough depth that one injury does not suddenly force a middle reliever into the eighth inning.

Jansen’s 2026 season demonstrated some of the danger in relying too heavily on one established closer. Detroit signed him to a one-year, $9 million deal before the season, hoping the veteran would provide stability at the back of the bullpen after entering the year with 476 career saves.

There were stretches when he looked like exactly what Detroit expected, including a run in which he held opponents scoreless in 10 of 12 appearances beginning in May. He also spent time on the injured list with pelvic inflammation, which is part of the calculation Detroit must make when deciding whether exercising the option makes sense.

Jansen can still get major league hitters out, and there is a reasonable argument for bringing him back if the Tigers believe he can remain healthy and productive. At the same time, committing $12 million to a 39-year-old reliever only makes sense if Detroit is also prepared to build enough depth around him.

The same would be true if the Tigers sign Bednar, Fairbanks or another established closer. Detroit still has to determine who handles the eighth inning, who gets the toughest portion of an opponent’s lineup in the seventh and who becomes the fallback option when the closer has pitched on consecutive days.

Those questions matter just as much as who records the final three outs. Successful bullpens are rarely built around one arm because reliever performance is volatile, injuries are inevitable and Hinch needs more than one matchup option when games become tight.

Detroit has enough young pitching depth that some future bullpen help could eventually come internally. Not every starting pitching prospect is going to remain in the rotation, and some could eventually provide the type of power arms that successful organizations routinely develop into relievers.

That internal depth should complement external additions rather than replace them. The Tigers have enough payroll flexibility to address multiple areas this winter, giving Scott Harris room to improve the roster in several places without treating the bullpen as an afterthought.

Some of that flexibility should go toward adding multiple relief options rather than one expensive ninth-inning solution. Detroit does not necessarily need to spend heavily on several relievers, but the Tigers should be aggressive about finding two or three pitchers who give Hinch legitimate alternatives in meaningful innings.

That is ultimately the difference between building a bullpen and simply signing a closer. Jansen’s option will receive plenty of attention after the World Series, but the more important question is what Detroit puts around whoever pitches the ninth inning in 2027.

A look at the players the Tigers could protect from the Rule 5 Draft and the 40-man roster crunch those decisions could create.

Did anyone else have an MLB survey pop up in their feed? I was looking for Arizona Fall League Stream and the survey popped up. Interesting, indeed.

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TB 7 @ CLE 3 - Bottom 9, 0 Outs

^{Last Updated: 10/17/2026 11:13:10 PM EDT}