The Detroit Tigers had a strong, clear plan for this strange, shrunken, five-round MLB draft, and they followed it with precision: Draft any player who ever played third base at Arizona State. Or practiced at third base at Arizona State. Or signed to play at Arizona State. Or, well, ever stopped in Arizona on a layover.
And you know what? It worked to perfection.
“In a short draft, we got impact,” Scott Pleis, the Tigers' director of amateur scouting, said late Thursday. “We got some really good players.”
[ Detroit Tigers in 2020 MLB draft: Here's every pick they made ]
Actually, he might be underselling it.
The Tigers crushed this draft. If these players reach their potential, the Tigers just supercharged their rebuild. Finally, they got some bats to go with all their young, talented pitchers. Granted, some of it might have been luck — drafting somebody like Spencer Torkelson with the first pick makes this draft successful, right from the start. And then several players fell into their lap.
Maybe, it was a bit of luck, and maybe, it was a plan coming together perfectly, but there was so much to like about this draft.
Here are the top 10 things:
1. You could almost hear Tigers general manager Al Avila shout his directive: “Pitchers? We don’t need no stinkin’ pitchers. Go get me some bats!" And that’s what they did. The Tigers selected six position players, including five straight college players. Best of all, they can hit. Or at least, they have a track record of hitting. These college hitters are polished, mature prospects, who — if everything goes as planned — aren’t that far from the big leagues.
2. The Tigers got more than hitters. They got impact bats. Guys with serious power. It starts with Torkelson, obviously. As Alan Trammell said, "No park’s gonna hold Tork.” That is music to the ears of anyone who has anguished as certain home runs turned into long fly balls in Comerica Park. Torkelson's not the only one; several of these draft picks have serious power.
3. Everything fell perfectly for the Tigers in the second round when they took Dillon Dingler, an athletic catcher from Ohio State, who has first-round talent. “A really high ceiling, toolsy catcher,” Pleis said. Now, here is where some luck comes into play. The Tigers had four scouts take a look at him before the season was shut down. Which is why they felt confident in taking him.
4. In this strange year, when baseball was shut down, the Tigers stuck with players they had scouted earlier. Which brings us to LSU’s Danny Cabrera, who could become the Tigers’ future left fielder, if he hits as projected. “We've got a lot of history with his bat,” Pleis said. “It's a quality bat. It's always been good. He's gonna be an everyday left fielder. Power bat. He's not a runner, but he runs good enough.”
5. In this strange draft, cut to just five rounds, the Tigers got serious value for their picks. In many ways, they were lucky that Dingler and Cabrera both slipped. “I was definitely surprised at that,” Pleis said.
6. They got some guys who can develop and have tremendous upside, especially Gage Workman, a 6-foot-4 power hitter from Arizona State, who they nabbed in the fifth round. “He does strike out a little bit too much at times," Pleis said. "But I think there's a huge upside with him. And the power potential is tremendous.”
7. The Tigers got a bunch of versatility. Positions don’t matter right now. So don’t worry that the Tigers drafted Torkelson and announced him as a third baseman. And then drafted Workman, a third baseman. Torkelson could end up back at first base. And Workman could move, too. The Tigers are using an old, proven method: If you can hit, they will find a place to play you. But more than the versatility, you could sense a maturity to these players, which showed up in the Zoom calls and video conference calls with the media.
8. Finally, when it seemed as if they mined everything they could out of Arizona State, they did a little more digging. After taking Torkelson and Workman, they nabbed Colten Keith, Mississippi’s Gatorade Player of the Year in 2019. Keith, of course, was signed to Arizona State. Sorry about that Sun Devils. It’s nothing personal.
9. They got a player with great bloodlines: Trei Cruz, the son of Jose Cruz, Jr., and the grandson of Jose Cruz. I mean, if ever there was a player who should be able to perform, just because of his genetics, it's Trei.
10. And, finally, it was just a joy, focusing on baseball again. Now, I just wish the owners and the players would get their heads out of their collective, um, fannies and come to an agreement and get back on the field.
Contact Jeff Seidel: jseidel@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @seideljeff. To read his recent columns, go to freep.com/sports/jeff-seidel/.
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