Daniel Norris

Tigers' Daniel Norris (back) won't be ready for Opening Day

Detroit Tigers pitcher Daniel Norris (back) won't be ready for Opening Day.

What It Means:

Norris is off to see a back specialist Thursday for an official diagnosis, at which point we can map out a better timetable. He left a Grapefruit League start on Tuesday because of lower back tightness, and there's a feeling that it might be something serious. Buck Farmer, Matt Boyd and Shane Greene could all be in line for early spot starts.

Norris posted a 4.63 xFIP in 60 innings pitched (13 starts) last season for the Toronto Blue Jays and Tigers. His 17.9 strikeout percentage was below the league average of 20.4 percent. We currently project Norris to record a 4.44 ERA and 19.0 strikeout percentage across 123 innings in 2016.