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The Detroit Tigers announced the addition of seven players to their 40-man roster Monday evening, just ahead of the 8 p.m. ET deadline to protect eligible minor league players from the Rule 5 draft. The team also announced the signing of left-handed pitcher Ryan Carpenter to a major league deal.
Who they added
The seven prospects added to the roster are outfielder Michael Gerber, right-handed pitchers Eduardo Jimenez, Spencer Turnbull, and Gerson Moreno, left-handed pitcher Gregory Soto, infielder Sergio Alcantara, and catcher Grayson Greiner. All seven players would have been eligible for the Rule 5 draft if they had been left unprotected.
Who they didn’t
The Tigers will not be adding infielder Kody Eaves, outfielder Jose Azocar, nor pitchers Adam Ravenelle and Paul Voelker. Those four will be among the players who are exposed in the Rule 5 draft, which will be held in Orlando, Florida on December 14.
There are no major surprises in the announcements, although Eaves had acquitted himself well in the Arizona Fall League recently. We provided a breakdown of each eligible Tigers player earlier Monday.
Rule 5 explanation
We also explained the Rule 5 draft and who is eligible earlier this month. Essentially, players who were drafted out of college in the 2014 draft, and players who were drafted out of high school or signed as international free agents under the age of 19 in 2013 are eligible this year.
A bit on the new guy
Carpenter is a 27-year-old left-handed starter who was drafted out of college in the 21st round in 2011 by the Tampa Bay Rays He spent the last two seasons in Triple-A in the Colorado Rockies farm system, improving his 2017 ERA to 4.27 from 7.47 in 2016. He struck out 9.3 batters per nine innings and had a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 4.13, his best since he played in Low-A in 2012.
The eight additions bring Detroit’s 40-man roster to 39 players. The team will need at least one spot open if it wishes to add a player in the Rule 5 draft, and more if it plans to ink any other players this offseason.