DETROIT — Jack Flaherty will not opt out of his contract and is returning to the Detroit Tigers for the 2026 season, the team announced Tuesday.
Flaherty, 30, signed with the Tigers on a two-year deal with a player opt-out last winter. The right-hander made $25 million last season. Because he exceeded the 15-start threshold in his contract, his 2026 option is worth $20 million.
Flaherty could have tested free agency but instead chose to return to Detroit after an up-and-down season that he finished with a disappointing 4.64 ERA.
To understand the decision, it could be worth revisiting how free agency went for Flaherty a year ago. He was coming off a bounceback season where he posted 2.95 ERA with the Tigers and went on to win a World Series after getting traded to the Dodgers.
Flaherty’s market, though, did not materialize as he hoped. He returned to Detroit on a short-term deal.
“I mean, the process isn’t fun when you get down to it,” Flaherty said in spring training. “End of January, early February and you’re still waiting to see where you’re gonna end up, and that’s not a fun thing … You’re like, ‘OK, all right, if I sign here I’m gonna have to take off real soon, get to spring and not know any logistics of where you’re gonna stay or where you’re gonna go to.’”
After the Tigers lost to the Mariners in the ALDS, Flaherty spoke highly of his time with the Tigers but indicated he wanted to decompress before deciding whether he would exercise his option.
Had Flaherty chosen to opt out of his deal, he and the Tigers could have faced another difficult decision. The Tigers could have extended Flaherty a qualifying offer worth $22.025 million. If Flaherty declined the qualifying offer, his free-agent market could have again been hampered because any team that signed him would have to forfeit a draft pick.
The Tigers also could have withheld the offer and forced Flaherty into free agency coming off his subpar season. Returning on his initial $20 million deal, then, arguably represented Flaherty’s safest option.
Despite his rocky surface numbers, some contract projections for Flaherty were still optimistic. Beneath the surface, Flaherty had a more encouraging 3.85 FIP and a 27.6 percent strikeout rate that was only a slight decline from his 2024 campaign. The Athletic’s Tim Britton recently projected Flaherty to be worth four years and $78 million on the open market.
Rather than test free agency, though, Flaherty is coming back to Detroit, set to make $20 million and with a chance to rebuild his value.
As it stands, the Tigers are bringing back starting pitchers Tarik Skubal, Casey Mize, Reese Olson and Flaherty, while others such as Troy Melton are expected to compete for rotation spots in spring training.
“I love these guys. I came back here for a reason,” Flaherty said after the ALDS. “I may not have pitched as well as I would have hoped for the regular season. We got into a good position, getting in the playoffs. … You love each and every guy in here. The camaraderie and the fight they have for each other, it will always mean something.”