Kahnle has elected to enter free agency after clearing waivers, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.
Kahnle was designated for assignment by the Red Sox on Wednesday. He cleared waivers and was set to be outrighted to Triple-A Worcester, but the veteran right-hander has opted to the test the waters in free agency. He's allowed eight runs on 12 hits and six walks while striking out five across nine innings (eight appearances) this season, but Kahnle might still draw interest from a team looking to add a veteran right-hander to its bullpen.
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Red Sox's Tommy Kahnle: Removed from 40-man roster
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The Red Sox designated Kahnle for assignment Wednesday.
Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com relayed after Tuesday's 8-1 loss to the Nationals that Kahnle would be DFA'd, and the move has now been made officially after Boston acquired infielder Brett Harris in a trade to take the reliever's spot on the 40-man roster. After signing a minor-league deal with Boston late in spring training, Kahnle moved up to the big leagues on June 4 and turned in an 8.00 ERA, 2.00 WHIP and 5:6 K:BB across nine innings over eight appearances out of the bullpen.
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Red Sox's Tommy Kahnle: Moving off 40-man roster
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The Red Sox are expected to designate Kahnle for assignment following Tuesday's loss to the Nationals, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.
Kahnle is poised to lose his spot on the 40-man roster after he gave up four earned runs on four hits and one walk in the eighth inning of Tuesday's contest, giving the righty an 8.00 ERA and 2.00 WHIP through nine innings at the big-league level. Alec Gamboa is expected to be recalled from Triple-A Worcester on Wednesday to claim the vacant bullpen spot.
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Red Sox's Tommy Kahnle: Added to roster
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The Red Sox selected Kahnle's contract from Triple-A Worcester on Thursday, Christopher Smith of MassLive.com reports.
Kahnle exercised an opt-out clause in his minor-league contract earlier this week, and the Red Sox have decided to add him to the big-league roster rather than let him reach free agency. The veteran reliever has collected a 1.40 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 21:11 K:BB in 19.1 innings at Worcester and will fill a middle-relief role in Boston.
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Red Sox's Tommy Kahnle: Preparing to opt out of deal
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Kahnle is expected to opt out of his minor-league deal with the Red Sox on Monday if he isn't added to the major-league roster, Tim Healey of The Boston Globe reports.
After signing late in spring training with Boston, Kahnle stayed behind at the Red Sox's complex in Florida before reporting to Triple-A Worcester in the second week of April. He's been excellent thus far, posting a 1.40 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 21:11 K:BB in 19.1 innings. If the Red Sox aren't able to find a spot on the 26-man roster for the 36-year-old righty, he shouldn't have much trouble securing a major-league deal in free agency.
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Red Sox's Tommy Kahnle: Stays behind in Florida
Rotowire
Kahnle remained in Florida to build up for the regular season in a more controlled environment, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.
Kahnle was a late addition to Boston's training camp, signing just seven days before the regular-season opener, and failed to secure a roster spot before the Red Sox headed north. He will eventually go to Triple-A Worcester, but he is listed as on the "development list," meaning he's not yet on the WooSox's active roster. Kahnle is locked into his deal through at least May 1, when an upward-mobility clause kicks in that allows him to pursue other opportunities. If he pitches well at Triple-A, Kahnle is expected to be part of Boston's bullpen before then.
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Red Sox's Tommy Kahnle: Doesn't make Opening Day roster
Rotowire
The Red Sox reassigned Kahnle to minor-league camp Monday.
Kahnle agreed to a minor-league contract with the Red Sox on Tuesday. It looked like the veteran right-hander had a decent shot at making the team's Opening Day roster as a member of bullpen, but that won't be the case after being reassigned Monday. Kahnle has no minor-league options left, so it's unclear whether he'll stay with Boston or request a release and try his luck elsewhere.
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Red Sox's Tommy Kahnle: Joins Boston on minor-league deal
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The Red Sox signed Kahnle to a minor-league contract Tuesday, Jon Heyman of the New York Post reports.
Boston is quite familiar with Kahnle, as he's spent about half of his 11-year career with the Yankees. The righty reliever compiled a 4.43 ERA, 1.30 WHIP and 50:31 K:BB over 63 innings spanning 63 regular-season appearances with Detroit last year. He was frequently deployed in high-leverage situations and notched nine saves (on 14 chances) and 16 holds. While Kahnle seems set to join the Red Sox in camp as a non-roster invitee, he has a good chance of being part of the big-league bullpen.
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Tigers' Tommy Kahnle: Takes loss Friday
Rotowire
Kahnle (1-5) allowed a run on two hits while retiring just one batter to take the loss Friday against the Red Sox.
Tasked with maintaining a 3-3 tie in the bottom of the ninth inning, Kahnle allowed a Romy Gonzalez single followed by a Ceddanne Rafaela walk-off triple in a game the Tigers really could have used in their playoff chase. The veteran righty has mostly been good lately, as this was just the second time in his last nine appearances that he's been scored on. However, Kahnle's endured a few rough patches this season, and his 4.43 ERA overall is a big step back from last year's 2.11 figure.
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Tigers' Tommy Kahnle: Struggles in fourth loss
Rotowire
Kahnle (1-4) allowed two runs on three hits and a walk while retiring only two batters in relief to take the loss Sunday against the White Sox.
After a rough patch earlier this summer, Kahnle had seemingly righted the ship with seven straight scoreless appearances coming into Sunday, but he took a step backward with a rough performance. The veteran righty now has a 4.80 ERA and 1.33 WHIP across 54.1 innings this season, which is a far cry from the 2.11 ERA and 1.15 WHIP he posted in 42.2 regular-season innings for the Yankees last year.
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Tigers' Tommy Kahnle: Struggles continue Tuesday
Rotowire
Kahnle allowed two runs on two hits and two walks across 1.1 innings of relief in Tuesday's 9-6 loss to the White Sox. He struck out two.
Kahnle has allowed at least one run in five of his last six outings, and he has a 9.53 ERA during the rough stretch. Since the start of July, the veteran's ERA is 16.36. Before then, Kahnle was having a nice season with a 1.77 ERA, 0.79 WHIP and 31 strikeouts across his first 35.2 innings of 2025, but he's now sitting with a 5.21 ERA and 1.33 WHIP, and the righty has quickly fallen out of favor in the Detroit bullpen.
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Tigers' Tommy Kahnle: Pitches better Monday
Rotowire
Kahnle tossed a scoreless inning of relief with two strikeouts in Monday's 3-0 loss to the Pirates.
After a brutal stretch of three games in which he allowed nine earned runs while retiring only three batters, Kahnle looked better Monday. Prior to the rough patch, the veteran righty had a 2.84 ERA, and he posted a sub-3.00 ERA each of the last two seasons. Kahnle's ERA is still sitting at an uncharacteristically high 4.73 this year, but he can whittle it down if he strings together a few more positive outings.
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Tigers' Tommy Kahnle: Struggles over weekend
Rotowire
In games against the Mariners on Saturday and Sunday, Kahnle allowed seven earned runs on six hits and two walks without retiring a single batter.
Kahnle had two of his worst outings of the season on consecutive days, and he saw his ERA climb from 2.84 to 4.50 in the process. This whole month of July has been a struggle for the righty, as he's allowed 12 earned runs on 11 hits and five walks across six appearances (2.1 innings). Meanwhile, Will Vest continues to pitch well as Detroit's closer, sitting with a 2.30 ERA and a team-high 15 saves. At this point, Vest is clearly the reliever to roster in the Tigers' bullpen, particularly given Kahnle's recent poor form.
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Tigers' Tommy Kahnle: Earns hold Sunday
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Kahnle worked around a hit to toss a scoreless eighth inning and earn a hold in Sunday's 3-0 win over the Twins.
After Detroit starter Tarik Skubal dazzled across seven scoreless innings, Kahnle served as the bridge to Will Vest, who ultimately secured his 13th save of the season in the ninth. Kahnle now has 11 holds this year to go along with eight saves of his own. The veteran righty also has a stellar 1.77 ERA and 0.79 WHIP through 35.2 innings. While Vest is the team's top closer for the moment, Kahnle isn't far behind, and his high-leverage role and strong ratios give him standalone fantasy value.
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Tigers' Tommy Kahnle: Converts on save chance
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Kahnle picked up the save Wednesday against the White Sox, throwing a perfect ninth inning with no strikeouts.
Will Vest has been Detroit's preferred ninth-inning option lately, receiving four of the last five save opportunities, but it was Kahnle who worked the final frame Wednesday. Vest allowed two runs on five hits in those chances and converted each one. However, Vest threw the seventh and eighth frames Wednesday. Kahnle is up to eight saves this season -- one fewer than Vest -- and it's likely the two will continue to split work.
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Tigers' Tommy Kahnle: Picks up seventh save
Rotowire
Kahnle struck out two in two perfect innings Wednesday to record his seventh save of the season in a 4-3 win over the Giants.
With Will Vest having picked up saves in the first two games of the series Monday and Tuesday, Kahnle was brought in to bail out John Brebbia with runners on second and third and nobody out in the eighth inning. After escaping that jam, Kahnle stayed on the mound and dispatched San Francisco's 2-3-4 hitters in the ninth to earn his second save in May. Vest appears to be the preferred closing option for Detroit right now, but Kahnle remains in the ninth-inning mix thanks to a 1.52 ERA, 0.80 WHIP and 22:6 K:BB through 23.2 innings.
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Tigers' Tommy Kahnle: Secures sixth save
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Kahnle earned the save in Tuesday's win over the Cardinals, tossing a perfect ninth inning while picking up a strikeout.
Kahnle was called upon for the save after Will Vest pitched the eighth inning against the heart of the Cards' order. Kahnle retired the side on 12 pitches for his first save since April 30. Kahnle leads the team with six saves this season, but Vest leads the team in May with two saves. They both have been effective in the role, as the Tigers continue to roll with a committee. Kahnle has had an excellent season, posting a 1.37 ERA, 0.81 WHIP and 20:6 K:BB in 19.2 innings.
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Tigers' Tommy Kahnle: Secures fifth save
Rotowire
Kahnle earned the save Wednesday against the Astros after giving up a walk and no hits across 1.1 scoreless innings. He struck out two.
Kahnle recorded the final out of the eighth inning and returned for the ninth, when he retired the side in order. It's the first save since April 18 for the right-hander, while Will Vest went 3-for-4 in save chances during that 11-day stretch. Vest appears to be the current favorite at closer given the recent usage, but Kahnle remains in the mix and has gone 5-for-6 in save opportunities with a 0.77 ERA, 0.60 WHIP and 12:3 K:BB across 11.2 innings this year.
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Tigers' Tommy Kahnle: Logs third save
Rotowire
Kahnle tossed two scoreless innings in Thursday's 6-1 win over Kansas City to earn his third save of the season.
Kahnle inherited two baserunners when he was called in for the eighth inning with Detroit leading 4-1, but he was able to force two-straight groundouts (the first of which resulted in a double play) to get out of the frame unscathed. After the Tigers tacked on two insurance runs, he came back out for the ninth inning and needed just nine pitches to retire the side and register his third save of the 2025 campaign. Kahnle has a 1.29 ERA, 0.43 WHIP and 5:0 K:BB across seven innings, as he has settled into the closer role.
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Tigers' Tommy Kahnle: Continues strong play
Rotowire
Kahnle tossed a scoreless inning of relief with two strikeouts in Monday's 6-2 win over the Yankees, and his ERA remains at 0.00 for the season.
It wasn't a save situation for Kahnle, but he still managed to wrap things up in the ninth inning against the team he played for the last two seasons. The righty has yet to allow a run so far in 2025 across four appearances, and he's emerged as the top candidate for saves in Detroit's bullpen. With Jason Foley working at the Triple-A level, Kahnle could tighten his grip on the closer role if he continues to pitch well, though Beau Brieske and Tyler Holton may remain in the mix for saves as well.
