Riley Greene knows Spencer Torkelson isn't into numbers, but he had to give him one back in the spring: "I told him he was gonna hit 30 this season," Greene said with a grin. Your friends know you best.
They do, right? There was reason to wonder a few months ago. Torkelson had two homers through April and four through May, further frustrations for the former first overall pick. He entered June on pace for 12. Then he hit that total by the All-Star break. And then Torkelson just kept on slugging. In August, he had his first real power binge in the big leagues, nine homers and an OPS of nearly .900. Last week, he hit homer No. 29.
Then Torkelson fell into a slump. In the past, it would have dragged on for several weeks. Droughts had defined his first season and a half in Detroit. In the seventh inning Thursday against the Royals, with two on and the Tigers in the midst of a four-run rally, Torkelson laid the barrel on the first pitch he saw, a hanging slider from reliever Carlos Hernandez, and drilled it into the seats in left. He dropped his head, raised a finger to the sky and hardly even watched the ball, gone as soon as it left the bat. It was in his locker after the game, No. 30 for No. 20, who admitted "it definitely maybe takes a little weight off your shoulders."
In other words, said Torkelson, "It just felt good."
"I like the subtle celebration that he had," said A.J. Hinch. "It was important to him. He considers himself a middle-of-the-order bat, and he’s very aware of where he fits in our short term and our long term."
No, 30 homers aren't worthy of a red carpet. But in the case of Torkelson, who turned 24 last month, they set the stage for what's to come. Just three other big-leaguers age 24 or younger have hit 30 homers this season: Juan Soto, Isaac Paredes (rub some dirt on it) and Julio Rodriguez. Torkelson nodded at these names Thursday and said, "They’re incredible players, so just to be in the same conversation is really cool, but long way to go."
"I’m not trying to prove anything to anybody," he said. "It’s more just trying to prove to myself how great I can be. Every single day it's like, how can I get better, just asking that question: How great can I be?"
And what has he proven to himself this season?
"Just that I belong and that I can succeed at a really high level in this league," said Torkelson.
There was nothing more important to the Tigers this season than Torkelson's development. They already felt good about Greene, who has the markings of a superstar if he can just stay healthy. But there was reason for concern with Torkelson, who didn't exactly ease anyone's nerves with an awfully cold start. There was also reason for belief: Torkelson was hitting a lot of balls hard. The data said he deserved better results. Slowly but surely, he started getting them.
Through his first 55 games, Torkelson had four homers and 24 RBI. He was slugging .356. His .672 OPS placed him among the least productive everyday hitters in the majors. Externally, there was panic. Internally, Torkelson just kept honing his swing and, as he said Thursday, kept "trusting myself."
"From the day I picked up a baseball bat when I was, like, two or three, my favorite thing to do was hit it over the fence," Torkelson said with a Little Leaguer's smile. "And I think my natural swing does that, so trusting my natural swing."
In 101 games since, Torkelson has 26 homers and 69 RBI. He's slugging .492. His OPS is over .800. Extrapolated over 162 games, that's a 41-homer, 110-RBI pace. Those are numbers within Torkelson's reach next season, which would have been preposterous to suggest a few months ago. It's hard to overstate what this means to the Tigers' future. Torkelson and Greene are the two non-negotiables in this protracted rebuild. They have to be great.
"I say it all the time: when Tork’s on, he has one of the prettiest right-handed swings I’ve ever seen," said Akil Baddoo, who's watched Torkelson grind from up close since they arrived in Detroit last season. "Just his follow-through, he's in the zone for such a long time. I always tell him, like, 'Yo man, when you're on, that swing is dangerous.'"
Torkelson has a keen eye, and fast hands. He's quick to the ball. His compact swing packs a punch, and now he's throwing haymakers. His approach has always been sound, to drive the ball the other way without fixating on the pull-side power. It's "his process," said Hinch, that has "been refined" this season.
"He deserves a lot of credit, out hitting department deserves a lot of credit," said Hinch. "He believes in what he does and he believes in himself, which is really important when you’re riding this roller coaster of the big leagues that can beat you down like it did early in his time here. It’s also going to challenge him with some lofty expectations moving forward. If his process stays the same, we’re going to continue to see a stronger and stronger hitter."
Torkelson is already impacting the ball like some of the best hitters in the game. He ranks in the 94th percentile this year in hard-hit rate, sandwiched between the likes of Paul Goldschmidt and Mike Trout, and he's ripped as many balls with an exit velo of 95-plus mph as Freddie Freeman. And the gaps between his expected statistics and actual statistics suggest he's still one of the unluckiest hitters in the game. It's only a matter of time before his .233 average catches up.
Last season, Torkelson either swung through or popped up a lot of hittable pitches, particularly center-cut fastballs. He hit just .223 and slugged just .371 against fastballs, compared to .271 and .498 this season. He still has work to do against breaking pitches, but hitting the hard stuff is a good place to start.
Born and raised in California, and drafted out of Arizona State, Torkelson is embracing life in Detroit. He keeps a customized Red Wings jersey with his name and number on the back in his clubhouse locker. He came up with the Tigers' hockey-centric home run celebration in the dugout, where players put on a Red Wings helmet and shoot a puck into a mini-net. While he keeps barreling baseballs, Torkelson admits his wrister "needs some work."
"I was at the dog park like a month ago and this guy was like, 'Hey, love the home runs, but you need to fix your grip,'" Torkelson laughed.
Welcome to HockeyTown. And hello, finally, to a better baseball team in Detroit, anchored by a 24-year-old and a 23-year-old who sit by side in the clubhouse. Greene looked Torkelson's way on Thursday and said with quiet confidence, "We know how good we are, and how good we can be." A few minutes later, Torkelson said, "Both of us are just scratching the surface. This team is scratching the surface of its potential." The Tigers are .500 since their 2-9 start, in a division where they can do damage next season.
Neither one likes to think too far ahead, in a game that will quickly leave you behind. But as he and Greene emerge at the same time, Torkelson can't help but peer into the future: "When you sit down in the offseason and reflect on the year, the good, the bad, the great, I think we can definitely allow ourselves to dream a little bit about what we can be."