The Detroit Tigers dropped a second straight game to the Kansas City Royals Saturday, falling 3-1 for their fourth straight loss overall and eighth in their last 10 games.
The Tigers will be desperate to halt the skid and keep their playoff hopes alive by salvaging the series finale against Kansas City Sunday when they face the Royals’ 6-foot-6 left-hander Daniel Lynch IV.
Before the afternoon game Sunday, the Tigers announced a significant pitching decision as they look to reverse their momentum for the stretch run.
On Sunday morning, the Tigers announced that Jacob Waguespack will open. Andrew Sears follows him for the bulk of the innings, making his major league debut. Manager A.J. Hinch confirmed the Sears call-up a day earlier, and Detroit rearranged its rotation to make room for it, giving Keider Montero extra rest and pushing Framber Valdez to Monday.
Jacob Waguespack’s Long Road Back to the Majors
GettyJacob Waguespack #58 of the Detroit Tigers will serve as opener on Sunday.
Jacob Daniel Waguespack is a 32-year-old right-hander, born in Prairieville, Louisiana. He stands 6-foot-6 and pitched at Ole Miss before Pittsburgh drafted him in the 37th round in 2012. He didn’t sign. Philadelphia signed him as an undrafted free agent three years later, and his path ran through a 2019 debut with Toronto and a brief 2024 stop with Tampa Bay, compiling a 6-6 career record. In between, he pitched two seasons for the Orix Buffaloes in Japan, part of a 2022 Japan Series championship roster fronted by Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Detroit didn’t give up much to get him. The Tigers acquired Waguespack from the Milwaukee Brewers on June 10 for a player to be named later or cash, plucking him off a minor league deal after a 1.66 ERA with 33 strikeouts across 21 2/3 innings at Triple-A. An upward mobility clause forced Milwaukee’s hand, and the Tigers added him to the active roster within two days. He’s held a relief role in Detroit’s bullpen since.
Andrew Sears Debuts as Tigers Search for a Spark
Andrew Warren Sears turns 24 on Aug. 30. The left-hander, nicknamed “Psycho” for his intense mound presence, took a winding path to Detroit: two years at Division III Rhode Island College before a transfer to UConn, where the Tigers took him in the 10th round, 290th overall, in 2023. He’s the first pitching prospect from the current front office to reach the majors, and according to the Tigers Minor League Report, he joins a list of Tigers 10th-rounders who made it, including the legendary Mark “The Bird” Fidrych.
A left elbow bone spur delayed his 2026 season until mid-May. Once healthy, Sears posted a 2.57 ERA at Double-A Erie, then threw 9 2/3 scoreless innings across two outings at Triple-A Toledo before the phone rang.
MLB Pipeline ranks him the No. 14 prospect in Detroit’s system, and preseason, Bless You Boys had him 11th, projecting a swingman or depth starter built around a low three-quarters slot, a fastball sitting 93-94 mph and touching 97, and a mid-80s sweeping slider as his out pitch.
“He pitches with some intensity, he’s got real weapons,” manager A.J. Hinch said, as quoted by MLB.com.
The Tigers are 61-68, fourth in the American League Central and six games behind the division-leading White Sox, with the Rangers, Twins, Guardians, Blue Jays and Orioles all ahead of them in the Wild Card race. A left-handed arm with swing-and-miss stuff is exactly what a thin staff needs. Sears’ chance to become that piece starts Sunday, against a Royals club riding a six-game winning streak.
Tigers Announce Decision on 32-Year-Old Pitcher Before Royals Finale