Spencer Torkelson was going out for dinner with his parents. Riley Greene was going out for dinner with his grandparents. Figures they got the same call. It was the manager of the Erie Sea Wolves on the other end of the line, telling the Tigers' top two prospects they were being promoted to Triple-A Toledo.
The reality dawned on Greene later that night. If all goes according to plan, their next stop will be their last one.
"Literally one more step to go," Greene said Tuesday. "Didn’t really hit me at first, but I was sitting on the couch in the apartment, like, wow, we’re one step closer to the big leagues."
It's unlikely they'll reach Detroit this season. Of course, it was less than a month ago that Tigers GM Al Avila said the same thing about the duo reaching Toledo. Then they started mashing even more mightily than before, and the Tigers had no choice. Torkelson and Greene were promoted Sunday night, along with shortstop Ryan Kreidler and catcher Brady Policelli, and will debut for for the MudHens Tuesday night.
Torkelson, the No. 2 prospect in baseball per MLB Pipeline, hit .298 with four homers and 1.006 OPS for the Sea Wolves in the month of August, which is impressive until you consider that Greene, the No. 13 prospect in baseball, hit .397 with six homers and a 1.255 OPS. They dumped their belongings in Greene's pickup truck -- "he's the U-Haul for the boys," Torkelson said -- and drove the 215 miles to Toledo. It's only 60 more to Detroit.
"It just makes you hungrier," said Torkelson. "You can taste it that much more, and you want to work that much harder and compete that much more just to get there and stay there."
In all likelihood, the Tigers will let Torkelson and Greene finish out the season in Toledo, where the MudHens are in the thick of a playoff race with 40 games to go. A.J. Hinch has already explained the two-part downside to calling them up when the rosters expand in September. Triple-A pitching will provide both hitters another challenge, without throwing too much at them too soon.
Torkelson said he's eager to play against guys who have played in The Show, and are burning to return. He said his old hitting coach at Arizona State, Michael Early, whose professional career peaked in Triple-A with the White Sox, told him "there's going to be guys that are good, but some of them are angry at the world that they're not in the big leagues and they're going to show you."
"I’m really looking forward to playing against guys that have that type of talent," Torkelson said.
These are heady times for the Tigers, with one wave of youth turning the tide in Detroit, and another on the way. Torkelson and Greene, have followed the big-league club closely this season, heartened by sights and sounds of the future. The Tigers are tied for the fifth best winning percentage (.563) in the AL since May 8. That's a long stretch of good baseball. Even better baseball is coming.
"Winning is contagious," said Torkelson.
"It definitely is," said Greene. "We watch the games a lot in our hotel rooms and our apartment and we just love seeing them win and all the smiles on everyone’s faces. Winning’s fun, and being able to do it with a group of guys that are all friends is awesome."
They'll be part of the guys in Detroit soon, perhaps as early as next spring. (Shhh, perhaps even sooner.) Torkelson and Greene have done exactly as the Tigers were hoping this season, which isn't always true of can't-miss prospects. They've forced their way up the system by outgrowing the levels below them. 2022 beckons, and that's when things could really get fun.