Pitching acquisitions unlikely to be enough for slumping Tigers

The Detroit Tigers made their first move ahead of the Thursday, July 31, 6 p.m. ET MLB trade deadline. But instead of creating a splash, the transaction might barely make a ripple.

On Monday, the Tigers added right-handed pitchers Chris Paddack and Randy Dobnak in a trade with the Minnesota Twins, sending their division rival prospect Enrique Jimenez, No. 14 on MLB.com's preseason ranking of top Tigers prospects.

Jimenez, 19, has appeared in 48 rookie league games for the FCL Tigers this season and is slashing .250/.339/.440 with six home runs, 23 walks and 42 strikeouts in 192 plate appearances.

It will likely take years for him to develop into a viable MLBer, but the switch-hitter has shown promising potential.

The same can hardly be said of the pitchers coming back to Detroit.

Paddack has a 4.95 earned run average (ERA) in 21 starts, allowing 115 hits (17 home runs) with 83 strikeouts and 27 walks in 111 innings. His 6.7 strikeouts per nine innings are the lowest in his seven MLB seasons.

Dobnak has spent the majority of 2025 in Triple-A, where he has a 7.57 ERA in 17 appearances (10 starts), allowing 69 hits and 35 walks with 42 strikeouts in 60.2 innings.

He fared better in his lone MLB appearance on March 30, giving up one earned run over 5.1 innings in relief of starter Bailey Ober during a 9-2 loss to the St. Louis Cardinals, but Dobnak's career 4.86 ERA in MLB suggests that won't be a common occurrence going forward.

The Tigers (61-46) lead the AL Central by eight games but have been mired in a nearly month-long slump. Since July 9, Detroit is 2-12 with two separate six-game losing streaks.

Earlier Monday, the organization announced that starting pitcher Reese Olson, who had a 3.15 ERA in 13 starts, will miss the rest of the season with a strained shoulder, per The Athletic's Cody Stavenhagen.