Tigers make first spring cuts, send four right-handed pitchers to minors

The Detroit Tigers reassigned Phil Bickford, Dugan Darnell, Tyler Owens and Troy Watson to minor‑league camp on Friday, Feb. 27, in the first round of spring training cuts, leaving 61 players remaining in MLB camp (not including players on the 60‑day injured list) with 27 days until Opening Day on March 26 against the San Diego Padres.

Phil Bickford, 30, was in camp on a minor‑league contract and is rehabbing from a right triceps strain, Detroit Free Press reporting notes. Bickford spent the entire 2025 season at Triple‑A and carries a five‑year MLB résumé that includes a 4.62 ERA across 189 innings in 187 games. Freep also outlines Bickford’s draft pedigree: No. 10 overall in 2013 to the Toronto Blue Jays out of Oaks Christian High School and No. 18 overall in 2015 to the San Francisco Giants from College of Southern Nevada.

Dugan Darnell, 28, a Northville native, was reassigned as he continues recovery from left hip labral repair surgery. Darnell made his MLB debut in August 2025 with the Colorado Rockies and posted a 3.86 ERA with seven walks and five strikeouts across 11 2/3 innings in nine relief appearances. In Triple‑A Albuquerque in 2025 he logged a 3.19 ERA over 53 2/3 innings in 35 games. The Detroit Free Press advised readers to "Keep an eye out for Darnell's return to games in May 2026."

Tyler Owens, 25, joins the minor‑league camp while he works back from right hip arthroscopy and is throwing bullpen sessions, per Freep. Troy Watson, 28, is completing a return‑to‑play throwing progression after right elbow arthroscopy; Freep and Heavy both describe Watson as among the injured right‑handed relievers, and Freep notes that "Of the four, only Watson is awaiting his MLB debut."

Media outlets varied in how they described Watson’s traditional role. Sports Yahoo labeled him a "veteran minor league starter," while Detroit Free Press and Heavy framed all four as injured relievers on minor‑league contracts. That sourcing discrepancy remains part of the early camp narrative as the club trims players with rehabilitation timelines.

Across coverage, outlets framed the reassignment as a conventional first cut in the roster‑shaping process. Heavy wrote that the move "signals the start of the roster‑shaping process as the Tigers gradually shift their focus toward players competing for spots on the 26‑man roster." Heavy also noted that Tarik Skubal is expected to make his third straight Opening Day start, which would be the first time a Detroit pitcher has done so since Justin Verlander from 2008 through 2014. Yahoo added blunt perspective on the four pitchers, writing "None of the group was ever likely to break camp with the major league club."

Detroit Free Press reporter Evan Petzold filed the primary item datelined LAKELAND, FL on Feb. 27, 2026, at 4:57 p.m. ET. With Opening Day 27 days away and 61 players left in big‑league camp, the Tigers have begun sending injured depth into the minor‑league system where bullpen sessions, throwing progressions and targeted rehab timelines will dictate which pitchers rejoin the MLB mix as the regular season approaches.