It will be interesting to see if the Tigers give Maeda more responsibility as a reliever this year than they did last season, when he was effective but almost always a low-leverage guy after losing his rotation spot. He might work out nicely as a setup man if given the chance.

That’s one less arm standing in the way of top prospect Jackson Jobe cracking the Opening Day rotation, though he’ll still need to beat out Keider Montero for that final spot. Maeda has registered a 5.68 ERA, 1.11 WHIP and an impressive 19/1 K/BB ratio over 12 2/3 innings in Grapefruit League action this spring. It seems like his days of fantasy relevancy are likely over.

All three homers were wind-aided, and they probably would have produced two flyouts and a double on another day. Factoring that in, this rates as another fine outing for Maeda, who struck out five and walked none. He has a 19/1 K/BB in 12 2/3 innings this spring, and he’s still very much in the running with Casey Mize and Jackson Jobe for two spots in Detroit’s rotation.

It sure looks like it’ll come down to Maeda, Casey Mize and Jackson Jobe for two spots in the Detroit rotation. It probably helps Maeda that the Tigers keep bringing in veterans for the pen; that’s where he’ll end up if he fails to make the rotation, while the other two would likely to go to Triple-A instead and help alleviate the roster crunch.