Three ways the newest addition to the Detroit Tigers will affect the 2024 roster
Despite signing a minor-league contract, Keston Hiura’s signing with the Detroit Tigers will still have an impact on the team in 2024.
Keston Hiura was added to the roster of players in Lakeland for spring training by the Detroit Tigers on Friday. He accepted a minor-league contract from the team and was invited to spring training to attend the team’s Florida camp.
27-year-old Hiura is an infielder who can play right or left. He was selected ninth overall in the 2017 MLB First-Year Amateur Player Draft, out of UC Irvine. Despite playing in 284 major league games during his career, Hiura has recently had trouble maintaining a spot on the Milwaukee Brewers roster.
He spent 2023 in Triple-A with the Nashville Sounds and a few backfield rehab games in Arizona, but he did not appear in an MLB game for the Brewers. It was a knee ailment that required that period of rehabilitation, keeping him sidelined for a while.
In an attempt to help Hiura start a fresh chapter in his career, the Tigers took a chance on him. The 208-pound, 5-foot-11 infielder may eventually provide depth on the left side. He did, after all, have a fantastic first season in the major leagues, but things have only gotten worse from there.
However, there’s reason to believe Hiura can make things better. He will provide the Tigers with depth when required, if nothing else. Who knows? Maybe a change of environment is just what he needs.
