The Tigers are in agreement with outfielder Michael Siani on a minor league deal, reports Emily Waldon of Just Baseball. He’ll report to Triple-A Toledo.
Siani was released by the Orioles a couple weeks ago. Baltimore had claimed him off waivers from the Dodgers in mid-May and mostly kept him in the minors. Siani came up for two days and made one appearance as a defensive substitute. Baltimore outrighted him off the 40-man roster after that and eventually pushed him off the Triple-A team as well.
The lefty-hitting Siani has had a rough year in the minors. He has combined for a .167/.281/.242 slash line with one homer and an ugly 30% strikeout rate across 219 plate appearances. Siani has been a well below-average hitter even in the minors. He’s an excellent baserunner and defender who has mostly been a fourth/fifth outfielder outside of a couple months as a regular center fielder for the Cardinals in 2024.
Siani has a similar profile to James Outman, whom the Tigers lost to a concussion yesterday. Riley Greene went on the injured list one day earlier. Detroit has needed to call up Trei Cruz and Corey Julks from Toledo, so they’ll bring in Siani to backfill the outfield depth.
