Sunday, August 02

Welcome to this edition of the Tigers Beat newsletter.

The Tigers head into Monday’s 6 p.m. ET Trade Deadline at a fork in the road. It’s not so much about buyers or sellers these days. It’s what the Tigers are selling for.

Can the Tigers get the Major League-ready (or close) talent to contend now or next year, supplementing the core they’ve built around Riley Greene, Kevin McGonigle, Dillon Dingler and others? Or would they go for higher-end talent that might be further away from the big leagues, a tactic that has paid off with Hao-Yu Lee’s impressive summer three years after his arrival from the Phillies in the Michael Lorenzen trade?

Saturday’s trade sending Tarik Skubal to the Dodgers for three Minor League players, including two of MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 prospects, has the chance to accomplish both.

An influx of young talent should help bolster a farm system that’s about to hit a natural transition. The Tigers entered the season with what was regarded as a top-heavy system with four prospects on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 list. McGonigle quickly graduated, and Max Clark (Detroit No. 1) is on track to do the same this season after a stellar MLB debut on Friday.

This, of course, is the goal of a farm system: to provide the Major League club with good players to build around. Then comes the next wave.

Here’s a quick audit of where the Tigers’ farm system stands, and where the Skubal trade helps:

Catchers

This might be the best area of depth the Tigers have. Dingler is an All-Star and a Gold Glove winner with four more seasons of team control beyond this year. Eduardo Valencia just supplanted Jake Rogers as a backup catcher, but his bat is strong enough to earn him time at DH as well.

Beyond Detroit, the Tigers are well-positioned. Josue Briceño is the No. 54 overall prospect on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100, and just returned from a wrist injury that sidelined him for the first half of the Double-A season. He’s back at Erie, where he has slugged three homers in his first nine games back. Whether he ends up a full-time catcher or moves to first base is a long-term question.

Detroit’s No. 10 prospect Thayron Liranzo made a strong impression in Spring Training before slashing .205/.338/.427 at Erie and has slumped in July, though he hit his 10th homer of the season Friday. Michael Oliveto, the Tigers’ No. 12 prospect, has made a quick impression at Single-A Lakeland with a sweet left-handed swing. Keep an eye on Manuel Bolivar (Detroit No. 20), one of the Tigers’ top signings from last winter’s international class, and Edian Espinal, a 10th-round Draft pick from 2025 who just got promoted to High-A West Michigan after a .920 OPS at Single-A Lakeland.

Infield

Middle infield remains the strength of the Tigers’ system, even after recent graduations. Max Anderson (Detroit No. 6) keeps on hitting in Triple-A Toledo and could be next in line for a debut if the Tigers trade Gleyber Torres. John Peck (Detroit No. 15) has built on his eye-opening Spring Training and hit his way to Toledo with a career-high OPS (1.429 entering Saturday) to complement his standout defense at shortstop.

Bryce Rainer (Detroit No. 2) corrected some swing-and-miss issues at High-A West Michigan and tore up the Midwest League in June; he’s in line to become Detroit’s top prospect once Clark graduates. Jordan Yost (Detroit No. 4) has been an on-base machine at Single-A Lakeland in his first pro season while playing some solid shortstop.

Outfield

This is one area where the Tigers could use an influx, which is exactly what newcomer and No. 25 overall prospect Zyhir Hope provides. Hope, alongside right-handers River Ryan and Brady Smith, represented the Tigers' return from the Dodgers in the Skubal trade.  

Besides Clark, the only outfielder in the Tigers’ Top 10 is Cris Rodriguez (No. 8), their top international signee from 2025 who has slugged as a teenager in the Florida Complex League. Brett Callahan (No. 14) looks more and more like a future big leaguer as the former 13th-round Draft pick has hit at every level, including Triple-A Toledo. Jesus Pinto (No. 16) has been on a tear at Single-A Lakeland.

Hope jumps into the Tigers prospect rankings at No. 2, putting him in line to become Detroit’s top prospect once Clark graduates later this season. He was a breakout prospect in the High-A Midwest League last year, and has added home-run power to his skill set this season with 23 homers in 93 games at Double-A Tulsa. He hit 10 of those homers in a torrid July, slashing .372/.439/.745. He’s two stolen bases away from a 20-20 season, and he has found his power while lowering his strikeout rate. He ranked behind fellow Tulsa outfielders Josue De Paula and Mike Sirota on the Dodgers prospect list, but his combination of athleticism, skill set and discipline fit the Tigers’ organizational profile.

With Greene and Kerry Carpenter two years away from free agency after this season, Detroit needs to figure out its long-term plans in the outfield. Hope should be a part of that soon.

Pitching

The Tigers already had the makings of a solid rotation beyond Skubal and Casey Mize. Troy Melton looks like a frontline starter, and Jackson Jobe is back throwing triple-digit fastballs in his rehab assignment following Tommy John surgery, providing a nice 1-2 punch alongside Framber Valdez, Keider Montero, Ty Madden and hopefully a healthy Reese Olson. 

If River Ryan can stay healthy -- and granted, that’s a big "if" for a soon-to-be 28-year-old with 233 professional innings -- he is arguably as good stuffwise as any of them.

Ryan made four starts for the Dodgers in 2024 before being shelved with a right elbow injury that August. MLB's current No. 68 overall prospect, Ryan missed the entire '25 season rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, then went 3-1 with a 4.46 ERA over eight starts this season at Triple-A Oklahoma City. He hasn’t pitched since June 17 due to a strained right hamstring. 

Even in limited doses, the power arsenal that made Ryan such a tantalizing prospect seems to be back, from a four-seamer averaging 97.6 mph to a sinker averaging 95.5. His slider has not been a great swing-and-miss pitch, but it has promise, while his cutter has had a high whiff rate in small doses.

If Ryan’s hamstring heals in the near future, he should have a chance to join the Tigers' rotation this season. He’ll have five years of control after this season, same as Jobe.

Smith has also had limited innings since turning pro thanks in part to Tommy John surgery shortly after his Draft year in 2023. But his mid-90s fastball and advanced mid-80s changeup have allowed him to rack up 113 strikeouts over 74 1/3 innings between Single-A and High-A. If he can get a quality third pitch out of his slider, cutter or curveball, he has a chance to help fill the gap between the young Major League group and their other prospects.

Ben Jacobs (No. 5) could be an old-school lefty starter, racking up strikeouts at High-A West Michigan, but he needs to put together consistent outings. Andrew Sears (No. 9) and Jake Miller (No. 17) are back from hip surgery and looking good in Erie. There’s belief that Miller could become a Montero-like swingman on Detroit’s radar soon. Lucas Elissalt (No. 18) has had a solid season at West Michigan. There’s a bevy of raw, talented arms in the lower levels, plus Cameron Flukey, Detroit’s top pick from last month’s Draft. 

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