Riley Greene is closing in on Detroit, just an hour south in Toledo. He is back in action after recovering from the foot injury that kept him off the Tigers' Opening Day roster.
But don't hold your breath on Greene's big-league debut. Not just yet. The No. 2 overall prospect in baseball still has some work to do in Triple-A.
"He's gotta perform and play well and get up and running," A.J Hinch said Thursday on the Stoney & Jansen Show. "He's played a couple games and I get asked a lot about him because there's a great anticipation for a young player. Part of it's going to be performance."
Green's rehab assignment was pushed to Triple-A Toledo this week, where he's 1-7 at the plate through two games. It's also where he tore the cover off the ball last summer, so it shouldn't take him long to find his groove. Still, the Tigers want him feeling it when they bring him to Detroit.
"It's different when you've never been to the big leagues. There's going to be a higher standard on when you're actually ready to come here for the first time," said Hinch. "We want him to be playing well and playing free. He's gotta get on base, he's gotta hit a little bit, he's gotta run around, play a little center. He has to check a lot of boxes before he gets here. When that's going to be is after he accomplishes all that.
"Once he's deemed ready, we are certainly anticipating his arrival. But the daily question that I'm getting is not really valid because it's not today, it's not tomorrow, it's not this road trip, it may not even be next homestand. I have no idea."
When Greene does arrive, he's slated to be the Tigers' everyday center fielder. He had claimed that job with a sizzling spring before fouling a ball off his foot and landing on the shelf. His power at the plate and athleticism in the field have been missed in Detroit.
He will be here soon, likely this month. Just don't hold your breath. Not yet.
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