Matt Vierling Ruled Out For Opening Day Due To Rotator Cuff Strain

The Tigers announced this morning that third baseman/outfielder Matt Vierling has been diagnosed with a strained rotator cuff in his right shoulder. He will be shut down for a period of rest before being re-evaluated for baseball activities. Manager A.J. Hinch informed reporters, including Evan Woodbery of the MLive Media Group, that Vierling will not be ready by Opening Day and will start the season on the injured list.

Vierling, 28, has been a solid player for the Tigers over the past two years. He hit .259/.320/.406 for a 104 wRC+ over the 2023 and 2024 seasons. He mostly played the outfield but also took significant playing time at third base and dabbled at second and first.

Going into 2025, the club projects to have prospect Jace Jung as the regular at third base. Vierling could have been an option to cover there if Jung struggled but was likely to be the regular right fielder, with Riley Greene in left field and Parker Meadows in center.

For as long as Vierling is out of action, the Tigers will have to adjust their plans. Ideally, Jung would take the third base job and run with it, but he has just 34 major league games under his belt thus far. Without Vierling, the top fallback options will be utility infielders like Andy Ibáñez and Zach McKinstry. Perhaps Javier Báez could be another option if Trey Sweeney is handling shortstop, or vice versa.

There are more question marks in the outfield. Meadows is also battling some inflammation in his upper right arm. He is currently being evaluated and the club should provide further updates in the coming days.

At this point, Greene a lock for one outfield spot. Meadows would have another if his issue is minor and he can be ready by Opening Day. Kerry Carpenter could be in the mix for some outfield playing time but he could also act as the designated hitter with regularity. Wenceel Pérez and Justyn-Henry Malloy are on the 40-man roster and have options. They previously projected to start the season in Triple-A but have a better path to big league playing time with Vierling out of action. Ibáñez and McKinstry could also play the outfield in a pinch. Akil Baddoo started camp as a non-roster depth option but required hamate surgery last week and will himself be out of action for a few weeks.

If Vierling is able to get healthy and return fairly early in the season, then this could all be a small blip in the larger context of the full season. Though if the issue ultimately proves significant, that would naturally lead to a larger level of concern. That’s especially true of Meadows also needs to miss some time. If the Tigers decide to add some position player depth, guys like Jose Iglesias, Alex Verdugo, David Peralta and others remain unsigned in free agency.