Detroit Tigers roster crunch is coming, but Justyn-Henry Malloy handles it like a pro
The roster crunch is happening again.
Six weeks ago, Justyn-Henry Malloy was demoted to Triple-A Toledo by the Detroit Tigers to start the 2025 season — even though he did everything right in spring training. One week later, the Tigers called him back to the big leagues as an injury replacement. Now, five weeks after his return, Malloy once again finds himself in uncertain territory, just like he was at the end of March.
The way he handles these moments tells you everything you need to know about him.
He's a true professional.
"I'm just wanting to live day by day," Malloy said March 30, exactly four days after being cut from the Opening Day roster. "I'm really trying to look positive and just be where I'm at."
The Tigers have four outfielders targeting a return from the injured list within the next month or so, likely in this order: Manuel Margot (left patellar tendon strain), Matt Vierling (right rotator cuff muscle strain), Wenceel Pérez (lumbar spine inflammation) and Parker Meadows (right upper arm nerve discomfort).
Margot — a fellow right-handed hitter who similarly excels against left-handed pitching — appears ready to return right now, should the Tigers choose to activate him. He has already completed five rehab games with Triple-A Toledo, including three starts in the outfield.
He is a threat to Malloy's spot on the roster.
Since returning to the Tigers, Malloy is hitting .172 with one home run, 15 walks and 20 strikeouts across 26 games — making four starts in right field and 12 starts at designated hitter. The 25-year-old ranks in the 99th percentile among MLB hitters with a 19.7% walk rate. Before that, Malloy spent three games at the Triple-A level, hitting .455 with one homer, two walks and one strikeout.
"I think it really is about the repetition, staying on top of it," Malloy said in late March, before his third and final game with the Mud Hens, "and with the reputation and consistency, it allows me to get a little bit better every day — just stacking blocks on top of each other."
In 2025, Malloy is determined to be dangerous at the plate by embracing a selective-aggressive approach in his sophomore season, which is a shift from the more passive approach that defined his rookie season.
What exactly does that mean?
"Get your A-swing off," Malloy said. "Walking is a big part of my game, but I think walking is a byproduct of being dangerous. You can't go up there looking for walks. That was something I had to experience my first time going up to the big leagues. I got to be able to get my A-swing off and put the ball in play, and I know when I put the ball in play, I'm going to be able to hit it hard. I can't be going up there looking to walk or being passive, and then getting walked. I need to be able to be dangerous enough to where the guy on the mound just wants to walk me."
That dangerous approach is what put Malloy in position to make the Tigers' Opening Day roster out of spring training, when he hit .309 with an .805 OPS in Grapefruit League play.
But the Tigers had other plans.
"Everyone knows how many spots are left," Malloy said, referencing the roster crunch in late March. "No one talks about it, but guys are very aware of what's going on when we carry 13 hitters and there are 14 of us in the room, so we know somebody isn't going to make the team. Unfortunately, that was me this year."
The Tigers chose Ryan Kreidler, prioritizing Kreidler's defense as a shortstop converted to a center fielder over Malloy's offense as an on-base threat. At the same time, Spencer Torkelson slugged his way into everyday at-bats as the designated hitter.
Just like that, Malloy was the final position player cut leading up to Opening Day.
He remained a team-first player.
"You root for your friends," said Malloy, who had a locker near Kreidler and Torkelson in spring training. "If your friend gets it over you, and your friend is also deserving of that spot ... more power to them and go get 'em."
Six weeks later, the Tigers are bracing for another roster crunch with multiple outfielders returning from the injured list — including Margot. The veteran Margot would provide a defensive upgrade over Malloy while still being a weapon against left-handed pitching, thus allowing for more lineup flexibility.
It's unclear what's going to happen, but if Malloy handles this roster decision like he did the last — not with frustration, but with perspective — then he will give himself the best chance to stick in the big leagues over the long haul, even if he's forced to return to Triple-A Toledo in the short term.
Because Malloy handles these moments like a veteran.
Just like he did coming out of spring training.
Maybe that's what matters most.
"I want to live here — mentally and physically, be right here," Malloy said March 30 while playing at the Triple-A level, four days after being optioned and one day before getting recalled. "I don't want to be waiting for a call. If it comes, it comes. And if it comes, then great. But we have a really good group of guys in the locker room, so being around them, it ain't that bad."
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