Tigers Under-the-Radar Young Pitcher Has Been Much-Needed Steady Presence

The Detroit Tigers have maintained their status at the top of baseball in terms of having the best record in the league, however, they have faced some adversity over the last several weeks.

In the injury department, a starting rotation that had one of the best first months in the history of the franchise lost two of its arms in Casey Mize and Reese Olson.

Though Mize has worked his way back, Olson still finds himself on the shelf, and as a result, the Tigers have had to get creative.

Pitching chaos marked last season's incredible run, and one man who was at the center of it has done the same to help the injury situation this year for Detroit.

Keider Montero Has Been Huge for the Tigers

24-year-old Keider Montero has been Detroit's fill in sixth starter for what feels like a long time now, but it was his debut last year that saved the Tigers down the stretch.

Though he has not been a dominant ace by any means when filling in for Mize and or Olson, Monday's outing against the San Francisco Giants may just have been the best performance of his big league career so far.

With five scoreless innings where he gave up just one hit, Montero was incredible and lowered his ERA on the season to a mark of 4.54.

In his last start against the St. Louis Cardinals, the right-hander got a little bit roughed up with eight hits and five runs allowed in 5.2 innings, but Detroit needs someone who can eat innings.

Montero has proven to be capable of giving the Tigers a chance to win, which realistically is all the team can ask for from their sixth starter.

In an ideal world, everyone would be healthy and Montero would be honing his craft in Toledo all year. A marathon Major League Baseball season is never an ideal world though, and realistically, Detroit will be counting on Montero frequently.

If he can continue to give his team these kind of performances, he will be one of the Tigers most undervalued and critical players.