Tigers Claim Andre Granillo

The Tigers announced that right-hander Andre Granillo was claimed off the Nationals’ waiver wire.  Granillo has been optioned to Triple-A Toledo, and no other transaction was required since Detroit had an open space on its 40-man roster.

Granillo posted a 4.71 ERA over 21 innings for the Cardinals in 2025, then followed up his MLB debut season with a rough 9.64 ERA in 9 1/3 innings for Washington this year.  Opposing batters delivered eight walks and two homers during Granillo’s small sample of 2026 work, with the inflated walk rate acting as an extreme version of the control issues the righty has battled for most of his pro career.

Strong strikeout rates helped Granillo somewhat mitigate his lack of control, but his K% dropped from 36% with the Cardinals’ Triple-A club in 2025 to a more modest 21% in 31 2/3 innings with Triple-A Rochester this year.  The lack of punchouts and a 10.5% walk rate contributed to Granillo’s 6.82 ERA in Rochester, and it ultimately made him expendable as the Nationals looked to create 40-man roster space.

The slider is still easily Granillo’s most-used pitch, though he has worked his sinker a little more regularly into the mix along with his 94.2mph fastball.  Granillo is so reliant on his slider that he may be becoming too predictable for hitters to solve, though the Tigers pitching development team will now take a crack at seeing if the right-hander can be turned into at least a steadier option for big league bullpen work.  If nothing else, Granillo is a Triple-A depth option for a Tigers club still missing some key arms from its pen.