Detroit Tigers claim reliever Kolton Ingram off waivers; Nick Maton designated for assignment
Nick Maton, a 26-year-old infielder who worked as primary third baseman at the beginning of last season, has been designated for assignment by the Detroit Tigers.
The Tigers claimed left-handed reliever Kolton Ingram off waivers Monday from the Los Angeles Angels, and to create room for him on the 40-man roster, Maton was cut with less than two weeks until the first full-squad workout in spring training.
Ingram, 27, pitched in five games for the Angels last season, posting an 8.44 ERA with five walks and seven strikeouts across 5⅓ innings. He was originally selected by the Tigers in the 39th round of the 2019 draft, then released by the Tigers in July 2020.
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The Tigers — under president of baseball operations Scott Harris — acquired Maton with outfielder Matt Vierling and catcher Donny Sands in a trade with the Philadelphia Phillies for left-handed reliever Gregory Soto and utility player Kody Clemens in January 2023.
Thirteen months later, Vierling is the only player from that trade on the Tigers' 40-man roster, while Soto remains under team control with the Phillies through the 2025 season and Clemens is still on the Phillies' 40-man roster.
Maton, a left-handed hitter who crushes fastballs but struggles against secondary pitches, failed to establish himself in the big leagues last season as the everyday player at third base.
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He hit .173 with eight home runs, 38 walks and 73 strikeouts in 93 games. He was worth minus-eight defensive runs saved at third base and minus-three defense runs saved at second base. He produced a minus-1.1 fWAR and minus-1.5 bWAR with the Tigers before finishing the season in Triple-A Toledo.
Maton does not have any minor-league options remaining.
Ingram made his MLB debut with the Angels in June 2023. He struggles in five games, but he was stellar with Double-A Rocket City and Triple-A Salt Lake.
He logged a 2.95 ERA with 34 walks (13.3% walk rate) and 77 strikeouts (30.2% strikeout rate) across 61 innings in 45 relief appearances. He had a 3.21 ERA with a 28.5% strikeout rate across 33⅔ innings at the Triple-A level.
Ingram signed with the Angels as a minor-league free agent in March 2021, after the Tigers released him in July 2020. He was the No. 1,102 pick in the 2019 draft out of Columbus State University.
Another roster move: Right-handed reliever Devin Sweet, a 27-year-old who was claimed off waivers Jan. 18 from the San Francisco Giants and designated for assignment Jan. 29 to create room for prospect Colt Keith on the 40-man roster, cleared waivers and has been outrighted to Triple-A Toledo.
Sweet has an above-average changeup.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers claim P Kolton Ingram off waivers; Nick Maton DFA'd
