Although the Detroit Tigers are unlikely to bring back Max Scherzer, might James Shields be a potential target? While it seems a bit odd to pay Shields over Scherzer, that may be something the Tigers are contemplating according to Jon Morosi.
Shields, who most recently played for the Kansas City Royals has drawn significant interest this offseason in free agency however has seemingly out-priced himself as teams like the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants decided to go different ways.
The Detroit Tigers don’t seem like a huge fit and as Morosi notes, their interest isn’t exactly crystal clear, but there has been contact between the two sides.
Extent of Tigers’ interest is unclear, source says. But there has been contact between James Shields’ agent and the club.
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) January 16, 2015
Perhaps it’s a case of the Tigers front office attempting to elevate the asking price (though Shields has done a fine job of that himself) if they know a rival team is engaged with the pitcher. Of course, it might just be Detroit themselves who are showing interest in the former Royals ace.
With just a month to go until pitchers and catchers report, it doesn’t seem as if James Shields will be on the free agent market much longer.
