"Depends on offers on the table" - Jack Flaherty gets honest on if Shohei Ohtani, Juan Soto & other stars get more favor while signing with teams

It may have taken some time to decide on a deal this offseason, but Jack Flaherty has opted to re-sign with the Detroit Tigers. The veteran pitcher agreed to a two-year, $35 million deal to return to his previous club, which also includes a player option for the second year of that contract.

After opening last year with the Detroit Tigers, Jack Flaherty was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers, ultimately winning the World Series with the club before hitting free agency yet again. The 29-year-old was one of several notable MLB stars whose free agency continued long into the offseason, joining the likes of Pete Alonso and Alex Bregman.

The veteran spoke on the latest episode of Flippin' Bats with Ben Verlander, discussing a variety of topics, including free agency. One of the topics that Flaherty addressed was the difference in free agent approaches for top-tier players such as Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani compared to players such as himself.

"It's probably more of less teams being in it once certain rosters start to be formed.. You also have the trade market as well, so teams could ask 'what I trade for so and so instead of trying to sign this player,'" Flaherty said.

"It kind of slows up in terms of everything... It was a weird process," Flaherty explained when asked if ownership or the number of interested clubs has slowed the free agent process.

Host Ben Verlander pointed out that players such as Alex Bregman this offseason and Blake Snell last season are bona fide MLB stars, yet they need to wait almost until Spring Training to get a deal done. On the other hand, Juan Soto and Shohei Ohtani were able to sign their deals in December.

That being said, Jack Flaherty believes that the market is different for each player.

"Everybody's market is the market but it all depends on what offers are on the table," Flaherty continued.

Jack Flaherty brings some much-needed stability to the Tigers' rotation

The Detroit Tigers have arguably the best player in baseball in the form of Tarik Skubal, who secured the American League Cy Young Award last season. Beyond Skubal, the Tigers had a number of intriguing, albeit largely unproven pitchers who could make the rotation, such as Jackson Jobe and Reese Olson.

While Olson has been solid through his first two seasons in the Majors, he has only thrown 216.0 innings in his career. By bringing back Jack Flaherty, the Tigers have another proven veteran to pitch behind Skubal, while also providing some quality innings ahead of their young arms. He could be a major signing for the Tigers as they look to reach the postseason again in 2025.