The Tigers have activated left-hander Brant Hurter from the 60-day injured list and moved outfielder Matt Vierling from the 10-day IL to the 60-day IL, Jason Beck of MLB.com reports. The team also optioned lefty Andrew Sears to Triple-A Toledo.

The 6-foot-6, 250-pound Hurter, who is celebrating his 28th birthday today, is back after missing three and a half months with lumbar spine inflammation. Despite underwhelming strikeout (17.8%) and walk (11.9%) numbers, Hurter parlayed a top-notch 60.3% ground-ball rate into 25 1/3 innings of 2.84 ERA ball before going on the IL in late May. Hurter only averages a little over 92 mph on his fastball, but his ability to induce grounders has helped him to a 2.56 ERA in 133 2/3 frames since he debuted in 2024.

Vierling, 29, landed on the IL with left adductor strain on July 30. The shift to the 60-day version will rule him out for the rest of the season. Vierling was a 2.3-fWAR player and an above-average hitter as recently as 2024, but injuries have cut him down since then. Rotator cuff and oblique problems held Vierling to 31 games last year, and he will wrap up 2026 with just 92 appearances. Across 291 trips to the plate, Vierling batted a career-worst .207/.255/.335 (61 wRC+) with five home runs. Vierling also posted a personal-best 16.8% strikeout rate, and his .230 batting average on balls in play and .304 xwOBA suggested he was a candidate for positive regression.

Not only will Vierling be unable to improve on his production this season, but it is fair to wonder if he will play for the Tigers again. Vierling has another year of arbitration eligibility left, but as someone who is currently making $3.26MM, he could be an offseason non-tender candidate.

Photo courtesy of Lon Horwedel, Imagn Images