It has taken a pair of pitchers whose careers were on hold due to Tommy John surgery all season to finally make their 2026 debuts.
Right-hander River Ryan is scheduled to make his Tigers debut against left-hander DJ Herz of the Washington Nationals when the teams open a three-game series on Monday in Detroit. Both pitchers missed the 2025 campaign and the first 156 games of this season following the elbow surgery and a setback.
Ryan, then with the Los Angeles Dodgers, made his only four appearances in the majors in 2024, registering a 1-0 record and 1.33 ERA. The 4 2/3 shutout innings he threw in a start against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Aug. 10 were his last of that season. A hamstring injury slowed the return to action for the 28-year-old.
Herz, 25, made 18 starts for the Nationals in 2024, finishing 4-9 with a 4.15 ERA. He walked 36 batters, struck out 106 and gave up 11 home runs in 88 2/3 innings. For Herz, the elbow injury occurred in spring training in 2025, and a flexor strain suffered in a minor league rehab assignment kept him off the mound for the Nationals.
Now, both have been cleared for action, and with both the Tigers and Nationals at 73-83 and out of the playoff picture, there is no reason for the teams not to take a look at the pitchers.
Unlike Herz, Ryan will be walking into an unfamiliar clubhouse in Detroit. He was one of three Dodgers minor league prospects acquired by the Tigers in an Aug. 2 trade for two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal.
“Hopefully we can get him a couple of outings,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said of Ryan. “We expect him to be a big part of what we’re doing moving forward. He’s really talented and he’s been here before. It’s not like a (big-league) debut, but it’ll feel like it given that he’s brand new to the organization.”
Ryan gave up two runs in 4 2/3 innings during his rehab starts with four strikeouts.
“He’s very talented,” Hinch said. “As much as we talk about a guy we traded for and want to get into our organization, it’s because he’s good. He’s demonstrated that.”
Keider Montero, originally listed as the starter, is expected to pitch multiple innings in bulk relief. Montero (9-9, 3.58 ERA) gave up two runs in four innings of a 4-1 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday.
Assuming the Tigers stick with the plan, Montero will be making his seventh relief appearance this season. Montero has started 25 games.
The Nationals have won six of their past eight games but one of those losses came Sunday as they fell 5-3 to the St. Louis Cardinals.
“We got so many guys here that are just so talented, really young, really hungry,” starting pitcher Jake Irvin told MLB.com. “The goal in here is just to continue to get better, continue to grow, continue to build a culture. I think we’ve done a really good job of that, and it’s a huge step forward for this organization.”
The Nationals have gotten better this season. They haven’t finished above .500 since they won the World Series in 2019, and in the five seasons since the pandemic, they have lost 91 games twice, 96 games in 2025, 97 in 2021 and 107 in 2022.
Washington won the first two games against the Cardinals and had a 3-2 lead entering the eighth inning but the bullpen squandered the lead in what became a 5-3 loss.
“I thought we should have won all three games,” manager Blake Butera said. “You leave winning two, and you should feel good about it, but it doesn’t feel very good because I feel like we should have won all three.”
CJ Abrams continued his big offensive season with a two-run homer, his 31st of the season, on Sunday. He needs one more RBI to reach 100.
The Tigers were in Chicago over the weekend, losing two of three to the White Sox.
–Field Level Media
