On Wednesday, the Detroit Tigers traded closer Shane Greene to the Atlanta Braves for prospects.
Prior to heading to the Braves, Greene was the Tigers’ best relief pitcher by far, even earning a spot on the American League All-Star team.
So, who will replace Greene as the Tigers’ closer?
That man will be Joe Jimenez.
With Shane Greene gone, #Tigers giving Joe Jimenez first crack at closer role — from @cmccosky in Arlington ahead of tonight's game against the #Rangers.https://t.co/KBrK7Vs0Vr pic.twitter.com/cyroFAhmlV
— Detroit News Sports (@detnews_sports) August 3, 2019
Jimenez, who is 24, has struggled this season as he has posted a 4.93 ERA with a 1.286 WHIP in 47 appearances.
http://gty.im/1165561038
When asked if he thought he would replace Greene as the Tigers’ 9th inning man, Jimenez said he did not know for sure that he would get the nod.
From Detroit News:
“To be honest, I didn’t know that I would be it,” he said. “Just because there are some guys doing better than me. Maybe they thought someone else could do the job better than me. I wasn’t expecting it.”
Tigers’ manager Ron Gardenhire talked about Jimenez’s struggles so far this season, chalking it up as part of the growing process.
“It’s just part of the growing process,” Gardenhire said. “There’s a lot of really good hitters out there, and when you center the baseball that’s what’s going to happen. I don’t care how hard you throw, when you center the ball like he does when he misfires, it’s going to get hit.”
Jimenez has been the Tigers’ closer in waiting for some time and now he will get his shot to prove he has what it takes to shut down Major League teams when everything is on the line.
