Detroit Tigers add RHP Brenan Hanifee ahead of Angels series

ANAHEIM, CA – The Detroit Tigers added right-handed reliever Brenan Hanifee to their active roster before playing the Los Angeles Angels on Friday, July 17.

Hanifee is replacing left-hander Framber Valdez, who was placed on the bereavement list on Sunday before the Tigers played their first-half finale against the Philadelphia Phillies. Bereavement leave allows teams to replace a player for 3-7 games due to a death or serious illness in the family.

The Tigers could have added a player on July 12 while playing in Detroit but Triple-A Toledo was in Indianapolis, and the timing made it logistically impossible.

Hanifee has pitched in 14 games for the Tigers this season. He has a 3.29 ERA over 13⅔ innings, striking out six while walking four.

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"We'll need to make a move when Framber gets out here," Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said before Friday's game. "He's on his way to rejoin us. So when he gets back and gets to Anaheim, we'll have to make a pitching move. We have a game where we're not going to play short."

Hanifee has pitched in 21 games for Toledo. He has recorded 23 strikeouts with nine walks, while recording a 1.583 WHIP.

The Tigers expected rotation against the Angels: right-hander Troy Melton on Friday, left-hander Tarik Skubal on Saturday and right-hander Casey Mize on Sunday.

Right-hander Jack Flaherty is expected to pitch Monday against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field and Valdez will pitch on the second leg of the road trip. Hinch has not decided on the third game's starter, though Melton would be in line.

Rookie catcher Eduardo Valencia, who homered in his MLB debut on July 9, remains on the active roster. He was the 10th Tiger to homer in his first MLB at-bat and the first since Akil Baddoo in 2021.

Updates on Gleyber Torres and Jackson Jobe

The smoke from Canadian wildfires blanketing the Midwest is impacting the Tigers on rehab stints, most notably Gleyber Torres.

"Gleyber is going to play in Lakeland," Hinch said. "Originally, he was going to play in Toledo, and we had some fear about the smoke. And thankfully, we left him in Florida."

Jackson Jobe will pitch for either Lakeland or Double-A Erie, which faces Richmond in Virginia this weekend, followed by Chesapeake in Maryland next week.

"We're kind of wait-and-see on Jobe too," Hinch said. "So Jobe threw a bullpen. He's going to go somewhere and pitch this weekend, but we're watching weather and smoke. Two things I didn't think I'd say in the same sentence."

Contact Jeff Seidel: jseidel@freepress.com. Follow him on X @seideljeff.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers add RHP Brenan Hanifee ahead of Angels series