The Tigers announced Tuesday that Vierling (shoulder) has been cleared to start a return-to-play throwing program, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.
Vierling had already been taking live batting practice and getting in some defensive work, but his ability to resume throwing represents an important step in his recovery from a right shoulder strain, an injury he suffered early in spring training. The Tigers aren't yet offering up a target date for Vierling to make his season debut, but he's likely to gradually increase his throwing distance and volume over the next week or two before the team maps out a minor-league rehab assignment for him. With that in mind a late-April or early-May return from the 10-day injured list may be a best-case scenario for Vierling, who should handle a near-everyday role either in the outfield or at third base once he's deemed fully healthy.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Not yet throwing
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Vierling (shoulder) said Friday that he has yet to start up a throwing program, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.
The 28-year-old resumed hitting a couple weeks ago and is taking part in defensive drills, but he apparently needs to strengthen his shoulder a bit more before he can begin full baseball activities. According to Chris McCosky of The Detroit News, Vierling will undergo an MRI within the next week, presumably to check the progress of the strained rotator cuff in his right shoulder.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Sent to injured list
Rotowire
The Tigers placed Vierling (shoulder) on the 10-day injured list Thursday.
Vierling was cleared to resume hitting and perform shoulder strengthening exercises Friday as the latest step in his rehab from a right rotator cuff strain. He still has a few more boxes to check before he can hope to begin a rehab assignment, but the door is still open for him to return to Detroit before May.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Progressing in rehab work
Rotowire
Vierling (shoulder) began a hitting progression this week and was cleared Friday to advance his shoulder strengthening exercises, Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press reports.
The 28-year-old resumed light baseball activities in early March after being shut down due to a strained rotator cuff early in camp, and he's now ramping up his rehab work. Vierling will begin the season on the injured list but could make his season debut sometime in April.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Gets more job security
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With free agent Alex Bregman passing up the Tigers to sign with the Red Sox, Vierling should have a clearer path to regular starts at third base, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports.
If Bregman had joined Detroit, he likely would have played most days at the hot corner, pushing Vierling to a bench role. However, Vierling should now slot in as a primary option at third, though left-hand hitting Jace Jung figures to be in the mix too. On days when Jung enters the lineup, Vierling could slide to the outfield. This makes the veteran's 2025 fantasy outlook similar to 2024, when he slashed .257/.312/.423 with 16 home runs across 144 regular-season games.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Avoids hearing with Detroit
Rotowire
The Tigers and Vierling avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $3.005 million contract Thursday, Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic reports.
It's a substantial pay increase for Vierling, who was eligible for arbitration for the first time. The super-utility player hit .257/.312/.423 with 16 home runs across 144 games for Detroit in 2024 and should see close to everyday playing time again in 2025.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Idle Saturday
Rotowire
Vierling isn't in the Tigers' lineup for Saturday's game against the White Sox.
Vierling has tallied a hit in each of his last three games, but he'll step out of the starting nine Saturday as Jace Jung gets the starting nod at third base and bats seventh.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Sitting Wednesday
Rotowire
Vierling is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Royals.
Vierling will take a seat for the series finale after he had started in each of the Tigers' last three games. Wenceel Perez will fill in for Vierling in right field and will bat third.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Sitting again Saturday
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Vierling is not in Saturday's lineup against the Orioles, Evan Woodbery of MLive.com reports.
Vierling is out of the lineup for the second time in the last three days. Wenceel Perez will hit fifth and start in left field in his place.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Rest day Thursday
Rotowire
Vierling is not in the lineup for Thursday's game versus the Rockies.
Zach McKinstry will be in right field for the series finale as Vierling gets a breather. Vierling reached base four times in the first two games of the series.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Not starting Sunday
Rotowire
Vierling is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the A's.
Vierling has a .628 OPS through six games in September and will sit Sunday for the second time in Detroit's past three contests. Zach McKinstry is starting in right field and batting seventh in the series finale.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Homer, stolen base in loss
Rotowire
Vierling went 2-for-5 with a solo homer, a stolen base and two runs scored in Wednesday's extra-inning loss to the Padres.
Vierling kicked things off for Detroit with a two-out solo homer in the top of the first before also reaching on a fielder's choice play in the third. He would then come around to score on a Colt Keith single after stealing second, marking his third multi-run effort in his last eight starts. Vierling also tallied a single in the contest, giving him back-to-back multi-hit games and he's now hit safely in 11 of his last 13 games overall. Over that latter stretch he's batting .340 (16-for-47) with two homers, four doubles, five RBI and nine runs scored.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Rejoining lineup Sunday
Rotowire
Vierling (back) will bat leadoff as the Tigers' designated hitter Sunday against the Giants.
The 27-year-old sat out the past two games after he exited Thursday's 4-3 loss to the Mariners due to lower-back spasms, but he'll return to action Sunday in a non-defensive role. Vierling is batting .333 through six games in August but is in the midst of a 14-game home-run drought.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Remaining sidelined Saturday
Rotowire
Vierling (back) isn't in the Tigers' lineup for Saturday's game against the Giants.
Vierling was taken out of Thursday's game due to back spasms, and he'll now miss his second consecutive game as he continues to recover. Ryan Vilade will pick up another start in right field instead and bat ninth.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Not playing Friday
Rotowire
Vierling (back) is not in the starting lineup for Friday's game against the Giants.
Vierling left in the eighth inning of Thursday's game against Seattle with back spasms. He was initially slated to play Friday, but he will be held out of action for at least one game. Ryan Vilade will start in right field and bat sixth.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Three hits, stolen base in win
Rotowire
Vierling went 3-for-5 with an RBI, two runs scored and a stolen base in Wednesday's win over the Mariners.
Vierling singled in each of his first two at-bats, coming around to score on a Bligh Madris' double following the latter hit as Detroit jumped out to a 2-0 lead. The outfielder would later drive home and score a run in the ninth to extend the Tigers' lead, increasing his average to .333 (8-for-24) in August. Vierling has tallied multiple hits in back-to-back games and has hit safely in five of six contests to open the month. The stolen base was his third of the season, with all three coming over his last 10 games.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Homers early in loss
Rotowire
Vierling went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in Wednesday's 2-1 loss to the Guardians.
Vierling went deep in the first inning, his 13th home run of the season, but then he and the rest of Detroit's hitters went quiet the remainder of the game. The 27-year-old continues to increase his career-best total of long balls, as his previous high was the 10 home runs he hit last year. Vierling is also two RBI away from tying his career-best mark of 44, which was also set in 2023.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Resting Sunday
Rotowire
Vierling is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Blue Jays.
Vierling will hit the bench after going 10-for-33 (.303 average) with five extra-base hits, six RBI and seven runs while starting in each of the Tigers' last eight games either in center field or at third base. Riley Greene will cover center field Sunday, while Gio Urshela moves across the diamond and gets the nod at the hot corner.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Solid effort in win
Rotowire
Vierling went 2-for-4 with a double, an RBI and a run scored in Thursday's 10-1 win over the Guardians.
A day after going deep and driving in three runs, Vierling stayed locked in, extending his modest hitting streak to four games. For the season, the 27-year-old is batting .249 with a .729 OPS. While his production doesn't jump off the page, Vierling does see regular playing time for the Tigers across the field, giving him some degree of fantasy utility.
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Tigers' Matt Vierling: Homers, drives in three in win
Rotowire
Vierling went 1-for-2 with a home run and three RBI in Wednesday's 5-4 win over the Guardians.
Vierling hit a sacrifice fly in the first inning and gave the Tigers a 4-2 lead with a two-run homer in the third. He has had a decent start to July, logging hits in five of seven contests with two home runs, five RBI and six runs scored. On the season, the 27-year-old is hitting .246 with 12 home runs, 38 RBI and 41 runs scored over 317 plate appearances.
