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On Thursday, it was reported that the Detroit Tigers had signed Bobby Parnell to a minor league contract. The deal reportedly includes an invitation to spring training as well.
Parnell, who had spent his entire MLB career with the New York Mets up to this point, was absolutely terrific from 2010-13, posting a 2.79 ERA (134 ERA+), a 2.78 FIP, a 1.27 WHIP and racking up 202 strikeouts in 213 innings pitched. He also saved 35 games over that time period.
Recently, however, things have not been going quite as swimmingly for Parnell. The right-hander underwent Tommy John surgery in April of 2014, and last season he posted a 6.38 ERA (59 ERA+), a 4.18 FIP and a 1.96 WHIP with 13 strikeouts in 24 innings pitched. Still, Parnell is only 31 years old. He could be a classic low-risk, high-reward bounce-back candidate for the Tigers.
It is also worth noting that although the sample size wasn’t necessarily large, Parnell had a 55 percent ground ball rate last season. According to Fangraphs PITCHf/x data, his average four-seam fastball registered at a healthy 93.6 mph last year as well.
Right now, the Tigers seem to have five bullpen spots pretty well locked in place with Francisco Rodriguez, Mark Lowe, Blaine Hardy, Justin Wilson and Alex Wilson, leaving two spots open for competition in a seven-man bullpen. Parnell now appears set to battle the likes of Drew VerHagen, Bruce Rondon, Shane Greene, Buck Farmer, Kyle Ryan, Matt Boyd and top prospect Michael Fulmer for one of these spots.
Of course, it remains to be seen how everything will work out this spring, but the Tigers made a very wise move in adding Parnell’s arm to the mix and giving him a chance to compete. If he can somehow recapture his old form, he could be a major help to what already looks like a very solid bullpen.
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