PHOENIX – Detroit Tigers right-hander Kenta Maeda completed the first (and possibly only) start of his rehab assignment with Triple-A Toledo on Sunday. The Tigers haven’t determined what happens next, but Maeda is healthy and checked all the boxes.
He is eligible to return from the injured list on Thursday.
The 36-year-old has a 6.75 ERA with 10 walks and 23 strikeouts in 30⅔ innings in seven starts with the Tigers this season, after signing a two-year, $24 million contract in free agency.
“We had a goal in mind and he reached it,” Tigers manager AJ Hinch said. “Those are arbitrary numbers about whether it was 45, 50, 55, 60, whatever. It was the right time to eliminate it. Four oops are more important than the number of pitches.”
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St. Louis Cardinals during the third inning at Comerica Park on Wednesday, May 1, 2024 in Detroit, Michigan.”>
Maeda, who landed on the disabled list on May 11 with a viral illness, allowed one run and three hits in three-plus innings against Indianapolis, the Pittsburgh Pirates‘ Triple-A affiliate. He racked up six strikeouts without walking and threw 53 pitches.
He allowed back-to-back doubles to former No. 1 overall pick Henry Davis (on a down-and-in splitter) and Jake Lamb (curveball up the middle) in the first inning, but other than those hits, he kept his Triple-A opponents down. control. He exited his start after facing a batter, who reached for a fielding error, in the fourth inning.
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The underlying results were encouraging.
Maeda used 19 sliders, 13 splitters, 10 four-seam fastballs, four sweepers, four sinkers and three curveballs. His four-seam fastball averaged 89.8 mph, the same average as his seven starts with the Tigers.
But Maeda generated 13 shots on 29 swings for a dominant 44.8% shooting rate, getting eight shots on 12 swings from the slider and four shots on nine swings from the splitter.
His slider has been the missing piece in his six-pitch mix, along with command of his four-seam fastball. He typically throws more splitters and fastballs compared to sliders, so his increased use of sliders indicates that he is focusing on it as part of his rehab process.
Simply put, Maeda needs a sharp slider to thrive with a sub-90 mph fastball velocity.
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Hinch plans to speak with two members of Toledo’s coaching staff to learn more: pitching coach Doug Bochtler and manager Tim Federowicz. Those conversations will help determine the next step in Maeda’s return to the Tigers.
“I haven’t talked to anyone there,” Hinch said. “I could see it. I saw a little bit of it, and (pitching coach Chris Fetter) did too. We’ll get everyone together and find out how it went for Boch, Fed, Fett and everyone involved.”
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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