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According to MLB.com's Jason Beck on March 26, pitcher Rick Porcello won the Detroit Tigers' competition for the No. 5 spot in the rotation. Porcello has made #Tigers rotation. Smyly to bullpen.— Jason Beck (@beckjason) March 26, 2013 Porcello, who has pitched terrifically in spring training, was the subject of speculation throughout the offseason and training camp regarding being traded.Porcello was recently linked to the Texas Rangers by Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal and Jon Paul Morosi.That Porcello "won" the No. 5 spot in the Tigers' rotation over Drew Smyly shouldn't be the surprise—it's that Porcello is still on the team.Porcello, who has a 3.00 earned run average (ERA) in spring training in 24 innings pitched, had no walks and 21 strikeouts. The 24-year-old exhibited great command of his breaking ball, which has sometimes eluded him over his major league career.Still, Porcello has 48 career wins in four major league seasons and looks to ...

After being offered to anyone that wanted to pay the right price this offseason, Rick Porcello has won the fifth spot in the Detroit Tigers' starting rotation over left-hander Drew Smyly.Matthew Mowrey from The Oakland Press tells us more:  #Tigers announce Porcello will be the 5th starter, Smyly will be in the bullpen; Matt Tuiasosopo has made team, barring something unforeseen— Matthew B. Mowery (@matthewbmowery) March 26, 2013  In six starts this spring, Porcello went 4-1 with an ERA of 3.00. In 24 innings, he struck out 24 while not walking a batter.Porcello knew he had to impress in order to stay with the Tigers and delivered in spades.Smyly also pitched very well and has earned himself a spot in the bullpen, presumably in the role of long reliever.In six starts, Smyly went 4-0 with an ERA of 3.38, posting a better spring ERA than Doug Fister and Justin Verlander.The move ...

One of the big question marks for the Detroit Tigers heading in to the 2013 season is exactly what role Rick Porcello will have with the team—if he is even still with the Tigers when the season starts. The Tigers have tried the entire offseason to unload the 24-year-old pitcher, but have yet to hear an offer they are willing to take. Entering his fifth season in Detroit, Porcello has started at least 27 games in each of his first four seasons. After reportedly settling with the club for $5.1 million and avoiding arbitration, that is not bad money for someone who figures to be their No. 5 starter. Ideally, the Tigers would like to get either a better defensive option at shortstop or a viable closer. Before the winter meetings, it had been speculated that Detroit would ship Porcello to the Pittsburgh Pirates for closer Joel Hanrahan. That deal never happened ...

Could a player such as Alfonso Soriano or Rick Porcello be dealt before the start of spring training? That seems to be the question of the hour as teams gear up for the start of the spring season. The 2013 MLB preseason schedule kicks off in earnest next month when teams report to their respective spring training homes in Florida and Arizona. Players such as Soriano and Porcello could be moved before the opening of camps. Here are four players who could be dealt before the start of spring training.  Begin Slideshow

Over the past few weeks, Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Rick Porcello has become one of the two hottest trade candidates in MLB (the other being Arizona Diamondbacks outfielder Justin Upton). It appears that half of major league baseball is interested in him and rightfully so.As I have stated many times before, the Tigers would be making a huge mistake trading a 24-year-old starting pitcher who hasn't even hit his prime. Porcello could fill most team's No. 4 or No. 5 pitching slot now with a chance to develop into a No. 2 pitcher if he can improve his secondary pitches, especially his slider.Jon Paul Morosi from Fox Sports reported that the Baltimore Orioles wouldn't trade Tigers trade target, shortstop J.J. Hardy, but they would consider trading their closer Jim Johnson. The Baltimore Orioles aren’t interested in trading shortstop J.J. Hardy to Detroit for starter Rick Porcello. They may be more willing to ...

A report surfaced this morning out of Baltimore saying that the Detroit Tigers, Chicago Cubs and Baltimore Orioles had discussions on a possible three-way trade with pitcher Rick Porcello and shortstop J.J. Hardy being part of the deal.Roch Kubatko of MASN Sports reported:"I heard last night that the Tigers and Cubs are discussing a potential trade involving pitcher Rick Porcello, who also interests the Orioles. Now here's the rumored kicker: The Tigers are trying to get the Orioles involved because they want shortstop J.J. Hardy, and they don't feel as though the Cubs have the necessary components to make it a two-team trade."This makes sense from a Cubs standpoint since they lost out on their main target---pitcher Anibal Sanchez---earlier this offseason when he elected to re-sign with the Tigers. The Cubs then went out and signed Edwin Jackson to a four-year deal.While Jackson is considered a solid pitcher and a workhorse, Porcello is younger ...

The Tigers rode their starting rotation to a Central Division title and an appearance in the World Series. The Tigers have insured they will have the same rotation (more or less) that pitched a great postseason for Detroit.They do have several questions facing them for the 2013 season, can they stay healthy, can Porcello or Smyly take a hold of the fifth job, and can recently re-signed Anibal Sanchez pitch as well as he did down the stretch and in the playoffs.Justin Verlander and Max Scherzer finished 2012 leading all of baseball in strikeouts. What can we expect from them and the other Tigers starters in 2013?Lets take a look and see.Begin Slideshow

As the San Diego Padres continue their search for an additional starting pitcher, one name that has stuck out as a potential trade candidate is Detroit Tigers' starting pitcher Rick Porcello.Porcello is in an odd situation with the Tigers, as the team has six qualified starting pitchers but only one available spot left in their rotation. Led by veteran hurlers Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer, Doug Fister and newly signed right-hander Anibal Sanchez, the final spot in the rotation will either go to Porcello or lefty Drew Smyly. Smyly put together a respectable rookie season in 2012, so it looks like Porcello could be the odd man out.The Padres could benefit from a pitcher like Porcello in their lineup.  With only two starters last season (Clayton Richard and Edinson Volquez) that pitched over 180 innings, the Padres are in desperate need of a workhorse pitcher that can stay healthy and take them ...

Just like that, the Detroit Tigers shocked their fans and national pundits—not because they re-signed pitcher Anibal Sanchez, but because of the cost they paid to do it. The reported five-year, $80 million deal (via ESPN) gives the Tigers one of the best rotations and highest-paid No. 3/4 starters in all of baseball. Instead of signaling the end of the Tigers' work, this deal signals the need for at least two more deals before the start of the 2013 season. The Tigers are fully in win-now mode, and they're going to make deals to win now and worry about the future in the future. The first and most obvious move revolves around Rick Porcello. While in theory it is possible—and maybe even rational—for the Tigers to hang on to Porcello as insurance against an injury, it won't happen. Porcello will be dealt. ESPN has reported that teams interested include Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Seattle, New ...

April behind them, the Detroit Tigers kicked off the month of May with a much-needed homestand victory. Jim Leyland and crew defeated the Kansas City Royals 9-3 at Comerica Park following Monday's rain out, which shortened the series to two games. The game will be made up September 24.The win snapped a four-game losing streak for the Tigers at home behind an outstanding effort by Rick Porcello. The Tigers' 23-year-old starter won his second game of the season and evened his overall record at 2-2. He is now 5-2 lifetime against the Royals and 11-4 in the month of April.Porcello's sinker led to eight effective innings on the mound, striking out three and inducing 14 ground-ball outs. Porcello didn't allow a walk and was in command of the strike zone throughout the night, never needing more than 16 pitches in any one inning to finish off the opposition.The maturing Porcello's only real nemesis on the night was ...