Reports: Tigers signing veteran OF Austin Slater

Field Level Media|published: Tue 10th February, 16:37 2026

Jul 18, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Chicago White Sox right fielder Austin Slater (15) in the batting cage before the game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The Detroit Tigers are signing veteran outfielder Austin Slater to a minor league contract with an invitation to major league spring training, according to multiple reports on Tuesday.

Slater, 33, will be paid a base salary of $2 million if he makes Detroit's roster and can earn up to $500,000 in performance bonuses, per the reports.

He batted a combined .216 last season with five home runs and 13 RBIs in 65 games for the Chicago White Sox (51 games) and New York Yankees (14).

For his career, Slater is a .248 hitter with 45 homers, 184 RBIs , a .336 on-base percentage and .384 slugging percentage in 699 regular-season games for the San Francisco Giants (2017-24), Cincinnati Reds (2024), Baltimore Orioles (2024), White Sox and Yankees.

The White Sox sent him to the Yankees ahead of last summer's trade deadline for minor league right-hander Gage Ziehl. Slater became a free agent on Nov. 2, 2025.

San Francisco selected Slater in the eighth round of the 2014 MLB Draft out of Stanford.

--Field Level Media

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