Trey Wingenter returns to Detroit Tigers with second chance to prove health and command

Right-handed reliever Trey Wingenter, once a promising high-leverage reliever with the San Diego Padres, joined the Detroit Tigers as the 27th player for Thursday's doubleheader against the Los Angeles Angels.

After the doubleheader, the Tigers optioned left-handed reliever Zach Logue to Triple-A Toledo. The roster move allowed Wingenter, despite his struggles in Triple-A, to join the 26-man active roster.

It means Wingenter gets another opportunity.

"The last three injuries have been the worst-case scenario," Wingenter said. "This one being not the worst-case scenario is a huge relief. It took a little longer than I expected going in, but I think some of the changes I've made are going to help me from here on out."

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The 29-year-old has battled back from Tommy John surgery and a pair of back surgeries — nixing his 2020, 2021 and 2022 seasons — in his injury-riddled 80-game MLB career. He earned a spot on the Tigers' Opening Day roster this season and pitched in the big leagues for the first time since 2019, only to suffer another injury.

Wingenter landed on the injured list April 19 with right shoulder tendinitis.

"That was tough at first," Wingenter said. "I've learned through all this rehab that you take it a day at a time, and a lot of times, you come out of these rehabs learning some stuff that helps you down the road. I hope I've gotten to that point."

He changed his lower-half mechanics in the early stages of his recovery and pitched for Low-A Lakeland and Triple-A Toledo during his 30-day rehab assignment. Wingenter had trouble repeating his delivery and throwing strikes, so the Tigers optioned him to the Mud Hens once the limit on his rehab assignment was up.

"Some minor, probably not even noticeable, mechanical things to create some space for the arm," Wingenter said. "Since then, it's been feeling a lot better. ... Being a tall guy (6 feet 7), if I get the lower half right, then everything else seems to follow."

The results for Toledo: 8.56 ERA with eight walks and 13 strikeouts across 13⅔ innings in 14 appearances. He threw 59% strikes in his first nine games, then 64% strikes in his final five games.

"It comes down to commanding the strike zone, which is the age-old quote," Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. "He needs to get leverage and get control of the strike zone, and the stuff plays. If he's erratic and puts guys on base, one hit can hurt you."

Wingenter flashed his best performance July 21 against Triple-A Lehigh Valley, an affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. He threw 10 of 13 pitches for strikes and struck out the side in the ninth inning to earn the save in a 4-2 win, sending down Esteban Quiroz, Aramis Garcia and Jordan Qsar.

His fastball velocity averaged 96.6 mph and maxed out at 97.5 mph. (His fastball averaged 95.7 mph and his slider generated a 45.5% whiff rate through six games with the Tigers before his mid-April shoulder injury.)

"It's coming along," Wingenter said. "We want everything in the zone and over the plate. In Triple-A, the automatic strike zone forces you to be over the plate because you're not getting away with anything there, so that's been a good trainer for me. You have to have confidence going at guys over the plate."

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Returning to the Tigers, Wingenter pitched in Game 2 of the doubleheader against the Angels. Stepping on the mound in the sixth inning marked his first outing in the major leagues since April 15.

Hunter Renfroe welcomed him back with a 395-foot solo home run off a third-pitch slider, but Wingenter retired the next three batters, finishing the inning by striking out Zach Neto on six pitches. The final two pitches — 85.3 mph slider and 96.3 mph fastball — were located perfectly and induced back-to-back whiffs.

It was another reminder of Wingenter's potential.

He returned for the seventh inning and worked around a one-out walk with an inning-ending double play. He threw 15 of 25 pitches for strikes and recorded four whiffs with two fastballs and two sliders.

"He moved better, and his delivery was a little better," Hinch said. "I know (Mud Hens pitching coach Doug Bochtler) has been working with him in Toledo. It was good to see him go back out there and hold his stuff. I think that's really key for him."

If Wingenter finishes the season on a positive note — which will require staying healthy and commanding his two-pitch mix — he would position himself as an early frontrunner to make the 2024 Opening Day roster, possibly as a high-leverage reliever. He is under team control through the 2025 season.

The next two months will be pivotal in determining his status moving forward.

"It's a repeated quote," Hinch said, "but his stuff plays in the zone."

Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers' Trey Wingenter gets second chance to prove himself