Cincinnati Reds v Detroit Tigers | Duane Burleson/GettyImages

The Detroit Tigers signed Jack Flaherty to a two-year, $35 million contract this winter, hoping he could be the robin to Tarik Skubal’s batman during the 2025 season. While that could still turn out to be true, his performance so far this year has suggested otherwise. Flaherty has an ERA well over four, and isn’t the same pitcher the Tigers assumed he’d be when they gave him that contract. Heck, he’s not close to the same pitcher he was in 2024, when the Tigers flipped Flaherty to the Dodgers at the deadline. The St. Louis Cardinals and their fanbase surely could’ve seen this coming.

Flaherty isn’t an ace, and he shouldn’t be paid like one. He isn’t, which is nice for Detroit, but for Scott Harris and the Tigers ownership group, $35 million is no small amount of money. Flaherty won a World Series last postseason with the Dodgers. He was a playoff start in LA. Yet, he’s been a shell of himself so far thiis season with the Tigers. Flaherty’s velocity has dipped at times, and most concerning has been his location.

Jack Flaherty isn’t an ace, and Tigers fans are finding that out the hard way

In a Friday night start against the Tampa Bay Rays, Flaherty gave up four runs in the first inning. His ERA has ballooned to 4.44 as a result, and the hits just keep on coming. Detroit’s rotation is in a tough position, as former top prospect Jackson Jobe is out for the season. Flaherty will play an important role in the Tigers long-term success, whether Detroit baseball fans like it or not.

His last start was an 11-1 loss to the Cincinnati Reds, which included a grand slam from Elly De La Cruz. Flaherty is as streaky as they come, which can come in handy when he’s hot. However, when he’s not, you get starts like Friday’s against another likely contender in Tampa.

Cardinals fans can relate to the Tigers struggles with Jack Flaherty

Flaherty’s time with the Cardinals was full of ups and downs, which included some negative interactions with the fanbase on social media. Flaherty cannot be blamed fully for that – Cards fans are a notoriously tough bunch to please – but a pitcher who was supposed to be St. Louis’ ace of the future and the heir-apparent to Adam Wainwright…didn’t quite work out. Flaherty’s exit was tough enough for Cards’ fans to swallow, but he hasn’t exactly righted the ship due to his lack of consistency. For whatever reason, Flaherty tends to back up an All-Star caliber season with, well, whatever this is.

The Tigers are one of the best teams in the bigs. Often, they can make up for Flaherty’s mistakes thanks to a lineup that ranks in the top-10 in OPS. They also rank top-10 in the majors in defensive runs saved. Detroit is a well-oiled machine, and no lone Flaherty start will change that. Yet, if the Tigers hope to make a serious run at the AL pennant, they will need their pitching staff firing on all cylinders.

That includes Flaherty, who has to be better.