Tigers Looking for Pitching

It's been a relatively quiet first day at the winter meeting so far with the biggest move being the Orioles acquiring third baseman Mark Reynolds from the Diamondbacks for pitchers David Hernandez and Kam Mickolio.  The word on the Tigers is that they are pursuing pitchers, but nothing seems imminent.

Steve Kornacki of MLive reported on Twitter that the Tigers are searching for a number five starter.  With Armando Galarraga always on shakey ground and young southpaw Andy Oliver probably needing more time in the minors, it makes sense that they would want to add some depth.  The Tigers are known to have interest in former White Sox right-hander Brandon McCarthy.  They could also make a trade similar to the Matt Joyce for Edwin Jackson swap in 2008.  One possibility might be Rays righty James Shields, who is coming off a down year, but has had a good deal of success in the past.

Earlier Jason Beck reported that the Tigers were talking to lefty specialist Ron Mahay.  The 40-year old Mahay wouldn't give them a lot of innings but has been outstanding facing left-handed batters.  With Phil Coke joining the rotation next year, they could use a reliable southpaw for the late innings.