Dave Dombrowski says the Tigers aren’t interested in Rafael Soriano

Many have assumed that the Tigers are going to go after Rafael Soriano or some other free agent closer. They need a closer. They have the money. They’ve worked quite nicely with Scott Boras before. If they don’t go after someone they’re going to be forced to go with a rookie closer in Bruce Rondon. It just makes sense, the reasoning goes.

Not so fast, Dave Dombrowski tells the Detroit News’ Lynn Henning:

Just got off phone with Dombrowski. Made it clear Tigers are NOT shopping for a closer. Will go to camp giving Rondon every shot to win job.

— Lynn G. Henning (@Lynn_Henning) November 29, 2012

Dombrowski believes they have back-end insurance in case Rondon isn’t ready: Benoit, Dotel, Coke, Alburquerque, etc. Lots of certitude…

— Lynn G. Henning (@Lynn_Henning) November 29, 2012

Of course, no GM would ever downplay his interest in a free agent in an attempt to improve his negotiating position. That, like, never happens.

The Royals have acquired outfielder Brian Goodwin from the Nationals, the teams announced Sunday. The Nationals received minor league right-handed reliever Jacob Condra-Bogan in the deal.

Goodwin, 27, was working through his third campaign with the Nationals in 2018. He saw limited playing time in the outfield (mostly due to the trifecta of talent the club already had in Bryce Harper, Adam Eaton, and Juan Soto), and finished the first half of the season with a .200/.321/.354 batting line, three home runs, three stolen bases and a .674 OPS in just 79 plate appearances. The Royals, who appear thin on compelling center field options at the moment, are expected to utilize him on a more frequent basis once he’s added to the active roster.

The 23-year-old Condra-Bogan has yet to break into the majors with any team so far. He got his start in pro ball in 2017 with the independent Washington WildThings of the Frontier League and issued three runs, three walks and 15 strikeouts over 15 1/3 innings before signing on with the Royals as a free agent. This season, he pitched to an impressive 2.08 ERA, 0.7 BB/9 and 13.5 SO/9 through 26 innings in Single-A Lexington before getting transferred to High-A Wilmington for a single appearance. The Nationals have not announced where he’ll be assigned for the remainder of 2018.