It sounds like Spenser Turnbull really doesn't want to play in MLB with the Tigers. He's stinking up Toledo and says his toenail is hurt. No good, the Tigers aren't putting him on the IL. He's days short of having a full year of service time and the IL would put him over. Making him a FA if the Tigers want to send him down (if he's ever even gets called up) and also giving him free agency a year sooner. I say trade him to Pittsburgh and watch him suck there. Too bad, I thought the Tigers had a decent SP in him.
"The timing of the optional assignment is critical, as well. Turnbull is six days away from reaching five years of Major League service time — the point at which a player gains the right to refuse an optional assignment to the minor leagues. The Tigers could have conceivably given Turnbull one big league start to see how he fared before making a decision on whether to option him, but even making two starts in the Majors would’ve resulted in him gaining the ability to decline when the team tried to option him. That service time is also worth keeping an eye on for club control purposes; if Turnbull gains even six more days of MLB service this year, he’ll be eligible for free agency following the 2024 season. If he remains in Triple-A, he’d be controllable through the 2025 campaign."
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2023/08/tigers-reinstate-spencer-turnbull-from-60-day-il-option-him-to-triple-a.html