Tigers facing Deadline decision with Boyd?

KANSAS CITY -- Though Matthew Boyd's first start out of the All-Star break is likely to attract a lot of attention Saturday night at Kauffman Stadium, it isn’t likely to be his last with the Tigers. At the very least, the courtship from contending teams interested in adding the left-hander to their rotation is expected to continue until the waning days and hours before the July 31 Trade Deadline.

What happens after that is likely to come down to whether a team can put together the kind of package that justifies the Tigers letting Boyd go with three years of club control and potential development remaining.

While Detroit is seeking impact offensive players in any return for the talented 28-year-old, the list of interested teams include farm systems that are deeper in pitching than hitting. That presents a potential quandary for the Tigers, for whom Boyd might represent their last big chance to get a serious influx of prospects in a trade.

While the Yankees have shown interest in Boyd, their system is much deeper in pitchers than hitters at this point. While five-tool outfielder Estevan Florial remains the Yanks’ top prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, and drew interest from the Tigers during Michael Fulmer trade rumors a couple of years ago, injuries have slowed Florial’s development since then. The 21-year-old entered Friday batting .231 with a .652 OPS at Class A Advanced Tampa, where he batted .255 with a .715 OPS in 2018.

While Clint Frazier is an impact hitter, he’s also nearing his 25th birthday with about a year and a half of Major League service time under his belt, which explains why he’s no longer in MLB Pipeline’s Yankees prospect rankings. While Frazier can provide value, he’s unlikely to headline a return package.

Similarly, though the Braves have a pair of highly-regarded outfielders in Christian Pache (14th on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospects list) and Drew Waters (44th), Atlanta’s organizational strength is pitching.

The Rays have a more balanced system, but Tampa Bay does not have a history of parting with top prospects in trades. The Rays are unlikely to part with shortstop Wander Franco, ranked as baseball’s best prospect, or Brendan McKay in any deal. Milwaukee’s top five prospects and eight of its top 10 are position players, according to MLB Pipeline, but it remains to be seen how heavily the Brewers will spend for starting pitching help.

Given the Tigers are perceived to be at least a couple years away from contending, their best fit could be a hitter with less service time and more years before free agency. If general manager Al Avila can’t find prospects in that sweet spot, he might have a decision to make: Compromise on a package to get a deal done, or hold onto Boyd until the offseason to try to get more teams involved, risking injury in the meantime as happened with Fulmer a couple of years ago. Some believe the Tigers would risk it with Boyd, who has three more years before he's eligible for free agency.**

*Injury updates
*• While the Tigers activated Spencer Turnbull from the injured list for his start against the Royals on Friday, they received disappointing news on catcher Grayson Greiner, who aggravated his back injury while on a rehab assignment this week for Class A Advanced Lakeland.

Greiner, who went on the 10-day IL on June 15 with a low back strain, was recalled from his rehab assignment on Friday. He’ll wear a back brace to try to address the issue and will be sidelined from baseball activity for a while.

“It’s not anything too severe,” manager Ron Gardenhire said, “but it’s something that he has to have right now.”

Greiner went 0-for-9 with three walks in four games on his rehab assignment in Lakeland.

• Josh Harrison (hamstring injury) could go on a rehab assignment shortly and rejoin the Tigers on their West Coast trip at the end of the month if he progresses as hoped.

• Tyson Ross (right ulnar nerve neuritis) continues to deal with neck tightness as he tries to progress with a throwing program. He consulted with a specialist as a precaution.

“Now it’s just whether he can pitch through it, get through the neck stiffness and find a way to pitch with it,” Gardenhire said. “Because they don’t see anything so far.”