The Tigers continue to add young talent to the organization.
Just a few years ago, it was considered one of the worst in baseball. The direction of the franchise has changed significantly since.
Thanks to slew of high draft picks, the Tigers have three top-50 prospects in Casey Mize (No. 2), Matt Manning (No. 29) and Riley Greene (No. 49). And five of their top-10 prospects were acquired via trades over the last three years in Isaac Paredes, Franklin Perez, Jake Rogers, Daz Cameron and Joey Wentz.
Via MLB Pipeline:
"The Tigers system hasn't been this strong since Kirk Gibson, Jack Morris, Lance Parrish, Alan Trammell, Lou Whitaker and Co. were coming through in the late 1970s. Detroit's last four first-rounders (Mize, Manning, Greene, right-hander Alex Faedo) look extremely promising, and the Justin Verlander trade with Houston two years ago could yield three key pieces in right-hander Franklin Perez, catcher Jake Rogers and outfielder Daz Cameron."
The best surprise for the Tigers this year has come in the form of left-hander Tarik Skubal, whose terrific season has pushed him to No. 4 among the organization's prospects. Skubal, a ninth-round pick in 2018, is part of a rotation in Double-A Erie that looks like the foundation of Detroit's rebuild.
Detroit's prospects closest to the majors at the moment are Cameron (No. 8) shortstop Willi Castro (No. 11), and right-handers Beau Burrows (No. 14) and Kyle Funkhouser (No. 18). Castro and Burrows will almost certainly make their big-league debuts this season.
Rogers (No. 7) was called up last week and looks to be the team's starting catcher moving forward.