The first half of the season is over.

The Detroit Tigers played their 81st game Thursday in a brutal 5-0 loss to the Los Angeles Angels, marking the halfway point in the 2024 season. The Tigers have a 37-44 record, sitting fourth in the American League Central and trailing the first-place Cleveland Guardians by 15 games.

STOCK WATCH ON MAY 16: Three pitchers among best in bigs, but big bats aren't hitting

"I feel like it's been some ups and downs this first half," said outfielder Matt Vierling, who leads the Tigers with a .250 isolated power since mid-May. "Definitely got off to a pretty good start, but lately, we just got to keep on going, keep on fighting. I'm proud of the guys for keep on going."

[ MUST LISTEN: Make"Days of Roar" your go-to Detroit Tigers podcast, available anywhere you listen to podcasts (Apple,Spotify) ]

Here's how some players are trending — in our first stock watch since May 16 — with exactly 50% of the season in the books:

Three up

OF Riley Greene

Greene is one of the best hitters in baseball this season.

For the season, Greene's 138 wRC+ ranks 21st among 146 qualified hitters. Since May 17, the 23-year-old has a .282 batting average with six home runs (giving him 15 overall) and an .876 OPS in 36 games, doing his best to carry the Tigers' offense in June with slugger Kerry Carpenter on the injured list.

RILEY ROBBED: No Tigers position players in first wave of All-Star voting, not even Riley Greene

Greene didn't get the All-Star votes he deserved. He didn't place in the top 20 for AL outfielders through the fan vote stage of balloting, even though his season-long 2.8 fWAR ranks sixth at his position.

RHP Jack Flaherty

The Tigers signed Flaherty to a one-year, $14 million contract in December 2023. After that, the Tigers helped him rediscover the best version of himself with adjustments to his body movements and tweaks to his pitch mix.

Flaherty, who has a 3.24 ERA in 15 starts, could win AL Comeback Player of the Year.

FLARE GAME: Tigers' Jack Flaherty finds elite version of fastball, slider by scrapping cutter

Since May 17, Flaherty owns a 2.45 ERA with eight walks and 52 strikeouts across 40⅓ innings in seven starts. His ERA ranks first among 115 pitchers with at least 30 innings during that stretch, while his 2.29 FIP ranks seventh.

Flaherty is one of the most coveted pitchers on the trade market ahead of the July 30 deadline. The 28-year-old ranks third among 74 qualified pitchers with 11.7 strikeouts per nine innings in his 15 starts, behind only the Chicago White Sox's Garrett Crochet (12.4) and the Los Angeles Dodgers' Tyler Glasnow (12.2).

By trading Flaherty, the Tigers could bring some much-needed young hitters into their organization.

RHP Beau Brieske

In mid-May, the Tigers recalled Brieske from Triple-A Toledo to replaced injured right-handed reliever Shelby Miller, and although Miller has since returned from the injured list, Brieske remains with the Tigers as a multi-inning reliever.

ACE: How Tarik Skubal tackled Phillies to help Tigers beat ERA leader Ranger Suárez

Brieske has a 2.49 ERA with five walks and 19 strikeouts across 21⅔ innings in 12 relief appearances since joining the Tigers. The 26-year-old is one of 15 relievers with at least 20 innings since May 15, and among the group, he ranks first with a 2.23 FIP. His four-seam fastball has held opponents to a .100 batting average.

He posted a 3.60 ERA (with a 4.00 FIP) across 35 innings last season. It'll be interesting to see if his career-best stretch this season is anything more than a fluke.

Honorable mention: LHP Tarik Skubal, 2B Colt Keith, OF/3B Matt Vierling.

Three down

OF Mark Canha

The Tigers acquired Canha in a trade with the Milwaukee Brewers in November 2023, then picked up Canha's $11.5 million club option for the 2024 season. The 35-year-old, who has played 14 postseason games in his 10-year MLB career, is a trade candidate because of his expiring contract.

THE VET: Tigers' Mark Canha understands Spencer Torkelson, ready to help at first base

Canha, an outfielder, is saving the Tigers with his decent defense as the primary first baseman after Spencer Torkelson's June 2 demotion to Triple-A Toledo. It's too bad he has been brutal at the plate throughout May and June.

Canha is hitting .231 with zero (of his six) home runs and a .589 OPS since May 17, a span of 34 games. His 73 wRC+ during that stretch ranks 144 of 167 qualified hitters, but at least he is a (slightly) better first baseman than Torkelson.

A better performance on offense would boost his stock on the trade market.

RHP Jason Foley

What happened to the Tigers' closer?

Foley, who has 13 saves in 15 chances, tossed 11 consecutive scoreless innings over his first 11 games, but since then, the 28-year-old has allowed 10 runs (nine earned) with three walks and 11 strikeouts across 17 innings in 20 games for a 4.76 ERA, dating back to April 27.

SAD STORY: Alex Lange emotional ahead of surgery to end his Tigers season

Since May 17, Foley owns a 4.22 ERA in 10⅔ innings.

Foley is struggling because opponents are hitting his elite sinker for the first time in his four-year career, with a .303 batting average and a .409 slugging percentage. His slider has improved significantly, but he doesn't miss enough bats to offset the usual abundance of hits against his sinker.

He relies on hitters making contact for most of his outs.

OF Wenceel Pérez

Since May 17, Pérez is hitting .246 with zero home runs and a .634 OPS in 34 games. That's a big difference from a .289 mark with three homers and an .841 OPS in his first 26 games.

The Tigers have boasted about their success in developing Pérez, but in reality, the 24-year-old has cooled down since the red-hot start to his MLB career.

ROOKIE: Tigers' Wenceel Pérez is proving it's possible for rookies to hit in big leagues

In the outfield, Pérez — a former infielder — is worth minus-4 defensive runs saved in center field (175⅓ innings) and zero defensive runs saved in right field (292 innings).

The Tigers need to help Pérez figure out how to stick in the big leagues. He doesn't count as a developmental success story if he flames out.

Honorable mention: UTIL Zach McKinstry, LHP Joey Wentz, RHP Casey Mize.

Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.

Listen to our weekly Tigers show "Days of Roar" every Monday afternoon on demand at freep.com, Apple, Spotify or wherever you listen to podcasts. And catch all of our podcasts and daily voice briefing at freep.com/podcasts.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: As Detroit Tigers close first half, Jack Flaherty shines as trade chip