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The Detroit Tigers lineup will feature Brenan Hanifee at starter.

The Detroit Tigers lineup will include reliever Brenan Hanifee as an opener with Ty Madden expected to serve as a bulk reliever against the Toronto Blue Jays, reports Chris McCosky of Detroit News.

Hanifee has served as an opener one other time this season. He recorded the first two outs of a game against the Kansas City Royals on Sunday, May 10. The Tigers went full “pitching chaos” that day, with six different relievers holding the Royals to three runs.

Detroit will employ a more typical approach tonight, with Madden expected to serve as a quasi-starter. The right-hander appeared after Tyler Holton in his first appearance of the season. Madden tossed five scoreless innings against the Boston Red Sox in that outing. He worked the final six frames of a loss against the Royals in his most recent appearance.

Detroit Tigers Lineup Update: Brenan Hanifee to Open Against Toronto Blue Jays, Ty Madden in Bulk Relief

The Tigers will send the Hanifee/Madden combo to the mound looking to end a three-game losing streak. Detroit was swept by the New York Mets in its most recent series. The club managed just one victory on the six-game road trip. The Tigers have now eight of nine games to fall into a tie for dead last in the AL Central.

The Blue Jays are in the midst of a similar skid. Toronto salvaged the final matchup of a three-game set against the Tampa Bay Rays to avoid a sweep. The team has lost seven of its last 10 games. The Blue Jays have a 19-24 record, nearly identical to the Tigers, who have one more loss.

With Hanifee in the Tigers’ lineup, the club is attempting to slow down the big right-handed bats at the top of the Blue Jays’ order. Toronto will likely trot out George Springer, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and Kazuma Okamoto within the first four hitters. Hanifee held righties to a .220/.251/.298 slash line in 2025. He struck them out at a decent 18.3% clip. Lefties pounded Hanifee to the tune of a .995 OPS last season. He had more walks than strikeouts against them. This season, right-handed bats have gone 7-for-25 against Hanifee.

Is Madden a Long-Term Fit in the Rotation?

Detroit selected Madden with the 32nd overall pick in the 2021 draft. The righty out of the University of Texas had success at each minor league stop. He reached the big leagues for the first time in 2024. Madden posted a decent 4.30 ERA across six appearances in his debut campaign.

Madden missed the entire 2025 season due to a shoulder strain. He returned to Triple-A this year and posted a 4.71 ERA over six appearances. The performance didn’t necessitate a promotion, but Detroit needed to add length to a pitching staff crushed by injuries. The Tigers are currently missing Tarik Skubal, Casey Mize, and Justin Verlander. Reese Olson was lost for the season during Spring Training. The mounting injuries will give Madden a chance to prove he belongs in the big leagues even after the rotation gets healthy. He’s delivered solid results so far.