Phillies get RHP Michael Lorenzen from Tigers to bolster rotation

DETROIT (AP) — The defending NL champion Philadelphia Phillies acquired right-hander Michael Lorenzen from the Detroit Tigers for minor league infielder Hao-Yu Lee on Tuesday.

The 31-year-old Lorenzen made the All-Star team this season for Detroit. He’s 5-7 with a 3.58 ERA in his best year since converting from a reliever into a starter.

“Hopefully, the Phillies reap the rewards of what the Tigers put into me,” Lorenzen said. “I think I’ve thrown the best ball I’ve ever thrown, and I think there’s still more in me. Hopefully, when I get to Philly, I can apply that and they get the benefits of that. I’m just grateful for everything that happened here.”

The Phillies have a double-digit deficit behind the Atlanta Braves in the NL East, but they are in a tight race for a wild card in the National League and chose to give up a coveted prospect for a pitcher that can potentially help them win now.

“Sometimes you have to give to get, and we think we have a chance to compete and stay in this all year long,” Phillies team president Dave Dombrowski said.

Philadelphia gave up its No. 5 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline. The franchise signed Lee out of Taiwan in 2021. The 20-year-old second baseman has hit .283 with a .372 on-base percentage and 14 stolen bases in 64 games for High-A Jersey Shore this season.

Lorenzen has thrown 105 2/3 innings this year, just shy of his career high of 113 1/3. He spent much of his career as a reliever for the Reds, but he’s been exclusively a starter for the Tigers and Los Angeles Angels the past couple seasons. He joins a Philadelphia rotation that includes Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola and Taijuan Walker.

“He was really one of the few on our list who could start, and relieve,” said Dombrowski, a former Tigers general manager.

Dombrowski said the franchise was interested in signing Lorenzen last winter but was unable to commit to giving him a spot in the starting rotation.

To clear a spot for Lorenzen on the 40-man roster, the Phillies designated infielder Josh Harrison for assignment. The 36-year-old Harrison hit .204 in 40 games this season in his first year in Philadelphia.

The rebuilding Tigers get a promising prospect in return for Lorenzen after signing him to an $8.5 million, one-year deal before the season.

“This was a very strong sellers’ market,” Dombrowski said. “There were very few clubs that were actually looking to sell, and a lot of clubs that were willing to buy. We were going to have to give up someone that we didn’t want to give up.”

AP freelance writer John Perrotto in Pittsburgh contributed.

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