this whole Alex Bregman situation feels a lot less exciting than it did a year ago.

Detroit went big last offseason, putting a six-year, $171.5 million offer on the table for Bregman, only to watch him walk. Ever since he opted out of his Red Sox deal, the Tigers have been loosely linked to him again — but this time around, there doesn’t seem to be nearly as much urgency.

According to Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press, the Tigers’ interest in Bregman has been “lukewarm” through the first month of the offseason. That’s a pretty telling shift after how aggressively they chased him last winter.

Petzold noted that it’s still unclear whether Detroit will even make another offer now that Bregman is back on the market. Things could change with the Winter Meetings underway, but for now, there’s no real sense that the Tigers are pushing hard.

If you’re a fan, it’s not hard to see why. After getting turned down last year, the front office might not be eager to jump back into another bidding war. On top of that, Gleyber Torres accepting the team’s $22.025 million qualifying offer may have effectively shut the door on a Bregman reunion — at least financially.

As Petzold put it, once Torres locked in that one-year deal instead of hitting free agency, a Bregman signing became far less likely. For now, it feels like the Tigers are keeping Bregman at arm’s length rather than making him a true offseason priority.