Sep 9, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; Detroit Tigers second baseman Gleyber Torres (25) acknowledges the fans as they applaud during his first at bat during the first inning against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Former Yankees Star Sets Record Straight About Leaving

Originally posted on New York Yankees on SI
By Michael Rosenstein | Last updated Sep 10, 2025 10:30 AM ET

Who says you can't go home? Certainly not Gleyber Torres, who returned to the Bronx for the first time since leaving the New York Yankees as a free agent.

General manager Brian Cashman let Torres walk after the 2024 season and he signed a one-year, $15 million contract with the Detroit Tigers. It's proving to be money well spent as Torres earned an All-Star bid while helping the Tigers set the pace in the American League Central. For his part, Torres doesn't sound like he's holding a grudge.

“I really, really liked the fans and everything when I was playing here,” Torres said, according to NJ.com's Max Goodman. “Unfortunately, whatever happened last year, I think from the past, I always tried to do the best for the team — for sure for the fans — to bring the energy every night when I got an opportunity to play."

The 28-year-old Torres made his MLB debut with the Yankees in 2018 and posted back-to-back All-Star seasons.

But after slugging a career-high 38 home runs for the Yankees in 2019, it was all downhill for Torres, who saw his power numbers dip over the next five seasons.

He finished the 2024 campaign with 15 home runs and a career-worst 136 strikeouts. And it wasn't just Torres' bat that gave the Yankees fits. He led American League second basemen with 15 errors in 2023 and 18 in 2024. Between the poor fielding and inconsistent hitting, the Yankees felt comfortable letting Torres depart as a free agent last winter.

“I know it’s a business,” Torres said. per Goodman. “Any team in MLB always tries to improve whatever was important during the year, and unfortunately, in a couple things, I didn’t do my best, right? So I really take the opportunity in Detroit, they gave me the opportunity to play this year and I’m really grateful.”

Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Torres, who went 1-for-3 with a double, RBI and run scored in the Tigers' 12-2 win Tuesday, is hitting .260 this season with 15 home runs. Just as important, the eight-year veteran has drawn praise for being a clubhouse leader.

“As a player, you’ve got ego, and when things don’t go well, you always want to feel frustration, because it’s your job and that’s the big thing,” Torres said, according to Goodman. “Playing with Detroit, it’s the same mentally. Do the best I can do for the team. It’s never pressure at all. It’s just I think the pressure from myself to get better every time and do my job.”

To that end, Torres has done his job so well that he expects to cash in as a free agent after the season.

“Gleyber has made himself the most money, right?” an American League executive told The Athletic's Jayson Stark earlier this summer. “Gleyber bet on himself with the one-year deal. And if he does this again in the second half, he’s going to get paid.”

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