The Tigers have an opening in center field, and one of their top prospects has his eyes on it.
"I love playing center field," Riley Greene told reporters Monday after his first workout of minor league minicamp. "Center fielder is the best, I think, out of all the positions because you got gaps to cover. It's fun. You can run around, and there's a lot of space. It's definitely my favorite position."
It's the position Greene has played most in the minors -- by a wide margin -- since the Tigers drafted him fifth overall in 2019, but doubts persist about his ability to stick there in the bigs. He logged about twice as much time in the corner outfield spots during his six-week stint with Triple-A Toledo at the end of last season. Still, Greene has consistently flashed the leather in center, growing faster and more fluid each year.
Widely considered one of the top-five prospects in baseball, Greene has a chance to be one of the best players in the game if he does become Detroit's centerfielder. His bat is that good.
Whenever big-league camp begins upon the end of MLB's lockout, the 21-year-old will likely be competing with Derek Hill and Victor Reyes for the final two outfield spots on the Tigers' Opening Day roster, with Robbie Grossman and Akil Baddoo holding things down in right and left, respectively. Hill is an elite centerfielder, so the job is Greene's to win more than lose.
"I'm just going to prepare like I'm going to play left, center and right," Greene said. "Nothing changes how I'm going to prepare, in that sense. I'm just preparing to play the outfield. That's really it."
And how did he prepare in the offseason?
"I ate a lot more," he said.
Specifically?
"I had a lot of Chick-fil-A and a lot of Chipotle — probably not a good diet," he said.
But Greene said he wanted "to put on some pounds" after losing weight throughout last season -- and the fast-food joints were always on his way home from working out. It only made sense.
"Going back to last season, I lost a few pounds. So I'm just trying to get a little bigger. I know I'm going to lose weight, so I'm trying to bulk up a little bit and eat as much as I can when we're in the season," he said.
Greene is listed on the Tigers minicamp roster at 6'3, 195 lbs. That's actually a drop from his listed weight of 200 lbs. last season, but he has plenty of time to keep bulking up, more time than anyone would like if the lockout drags on. He was a wiry 18-year-old when the Tigers drafted him. He's quickly grown into a man, with the potential to mash in the bigs.
Greene slashed .308/.400/.553. over 40 games last season in Triple-A. It was former big-league exec Keith Law who said this offseason that he foresees ".300/.400/.550 seasons" for Greene in the bigs, "and if he does that in centerfield, he'll be on the shortlist of candidates for the best player in baseball."
To keep his bat sharp this winter, Greene made frequent trips to his former high school field in Florida to take swings off a group of his friends who are professional pitchers. He said he wanted to have a feel for live pitching coming into camp.
You know where he stopped on the way home.
Fellow top prospect Spencer Torkelson, meanwhile, spent the winter getting leaner -- with the help of his girlfriend. He also got stronger.
"She cooked a lot this offseason so I wasn't DoorDashing a bunch," he said with a laugh. "I ate a lot cleaner. And I put a gym in my garage, so when I got the itch to work out I could just buzz in there for a little while."
Torkelson said he feels "really good" after taking five weeks to rest following an ankle injury in the Arizona Fall League. And he's eager to start proving it at the plate. The former first overall pick smacked 30 homers across three levels of the minors last season, capped off by 40 games in Triple-A Toledo where he posted a healthy .881 OPS.
Now he's healthier all around. He said he "really emphasized getting stronger this offseason and being more consistent in the box. Just being short to the ball. When I struggled, I notice myself coming around (the ball) or pulling off. It goes to the mental toughness of keeping that approach even it's the 120th game."
Both Greene and Torkelson have legitimate shots to head straight to Detroit this season. The Tigers will give them every chance to do it, whenever try-outs begin in earnest.
