DETROIT (AP) — The Detroit Tigers signed former New York Yankees second baseman Gleyber Torres to a $15 million, one-year contract on Friday.
The two-time All-Star gets a slight raise from his $14.2 million salary with the Yankees. His agreement includes a one-time assignment bonus of $500,000.
“We were very aggressive to try to land it. I mean, I was on the phone for most of Christmas Eve, which my family didn’t really appreciate,” Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris said. "But, we feel like we got better today. We feel like adding Gleyber made us better, and we feel like he’s going to make the players around him a lot better.”
Torres batted .265 with 138 home runs and 441 RBIs in seven seasons with the Yankees, who acquired him from the Cubs in the July 2016 trade that sent closer Aroldis Chapman to Chicago.
The 28-year-old infielder hit .257 with 15 homers, 63 RBIs and 26 doubles last season while helping the Yankees win the AL East and reach the World Series, where they lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in five games.
“Our offense has to get better," Harris said. “He can fit anywhere in our lineup.”
Torres was hitting .221 with eight homers and 30 RBIs in 86 games through July 4, then batted .298 with seven homers and 30 RBIs in his last 68 games.
“From the very first conversation that we had with Gleyber this offseason, we talked about how we think there’s more in there. We think he can get better on both sides of the ball. Gleyber believes that, too,” Harris said.
“He had a lot of opportunity to go to different places this winter on longer deals than the one he took. But his agents were very up front with me about his desire to bet on himself, and honestly that made me want him more.”
Torres' 18 errors were six more than any other major league second baseman. He was benched for a June 27 game against the New York Mets after a poor performance in the Subway Series opener, then was pulled by manager Aaron Boone for lack of hustle during an Aug. 2 game against Toronto. Torres responded well to Boone's decision and did not have similar issues the rest of the season.
“We’re really excited to add Gleyber to our mix," Harris said.
Torres will play second base in Detroit while Colt Keith shifts to first, Harris said. Keith's 12 errors at second base last season were second to Torres’ total.
Harris said he told Spencer Torkelson there's still a role available for him at first base and designated hitter if he's productive. The top pick in the 2020 amateur draft, the 25-year-old Torkelson had 31 home runs and 94 RBIs for the Tigers in 2023 but slumped to .219 with 10 homers, 37 RBIs and a .669 OPS in 92 games last season. He was demoted to the minors from June 3 to Aug. 16.
Torres was the Yankees' primary shortstop from 2020-21 but was shifted back to second base in September 2021 after making 18 errors that season, including four in the prior week.
Harris said the Tigers still believe Keith is “a very capable second baseman.”
“He may move back to second base in the future. But for 2025, our best team has Gleyber at second base and Colt at first base,” Harris said.
Torres, a native of Caracas, Venezuela, was signed in 2013 by the Cubs and included in a 2016 deal with Adam Warren, Billy McKinney and Rashad Crawford that sent Chapman to Chicago. The Cubs ended up beating Cleveland in the World Series that season, ending a 108-year title drought.
Torres moved quickly through the minors and made his major league debut in 2018 with the Yankees. He homered in four straight games as a rookie, and at 21 years, 163 days old, became the youngest player in American League history to accomplish the feat. Torres also was selected for the first of two consecutive All-Star Games. He finished third in AL Rookie of the Year balloting behind winner Shohei Ohtani and then-teammate Miguel Andújar.
He also was successful in October for the Yankees, posting a .795 OPS with seven home runs and 25 RBIs in six postseasons for New York. His 16.2% strikeout rate ranks fifth among players with at least 150 postseason plate appearances since the start of the 2018 season.
“One of our areas of need was more balance in our lineup. We got a little bit too left-handed toward the end of the season,” Harris said. "Adding a player with Gleyber’s track record against left-handed pitching is a significant boost to our lineup. We think he’s going to add on-base skills, we think he’s going to add damage and we think he’s going to be able to protect some of our young but really talented left-handed hitters who will hit in the middle of our lineup in 2025.”
In a corresponding roster move, left-hander Bailey Horn was designated for assignment by the Tigers.
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The Associated Press
