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DETROIT – The Detroit Tigers’ top prospects are closing in on Detroit. In fact, they will only be minutes from Interstate 75.
The Tigers announced today that first and third baseman Spencer Torkelson, outfielder Riley Greene and shortstop Ryan Kriedler have been promoted to Double-A Erie’s Triple-A Toledo.
Torkelson, 21, was the first overall pick last summer. After starting the season in Class A (Advanced) West Michigan, he was promoted to Erie two months ago.
In 81 games between the two levels, the former Arizona State star reached .282 with a .963 OPS. He has 19 homers and 21 doubles with 54 walks and 78 strikeouts in 353 home plate appearances.
Greene, 20, was the 5th overall pick in 2019. He spent the entire summer in Erie, hitting 0.296 with an OPS of 0.901. He has 16 homers and 16 doubles, while walking 41 times and hitting 102 times on catches in 368 home plate appearances.
Torkelson and Greene are generally ranked in the top 20 prospects in all of baseball.
Kreider isn’t in that rarefied air, but the 23-year-old is known as a defensive genius and has turned heads this summer in Erie. He was fourth in 2019 outside of UCLA.
Tigers manager AJ was asked about Greene and Torkelson on Sunday morning, ahead of the promotion announcement.
He said he wanted to crush any rumors they would be promoted to Detroit in 2021, but said “these are an exciting prospects who are going to be wearing a big league uniform hopefully soon.”
Hinch said there was a debate between keeping them in Double-A until the end of the season, where they had done so well, or “giving them an uncomfortable setting” to test them at the end of the season. year.
The Tigers opted for the latter.
“The next level will teach them something they’ve never experienced before,” Hinch said. “Maybe it’s more of the low speed throws in Triple-A or you’re starting to have to plan the game or the lefties are a little better. Now you go up against guys with service time in the Major League. This is going to be new to them.
After Toledo, the next step will be in the big leagues, what Hinch called “the biggest jump in the world”. This will not happen in 2021. But after today’s promotion, the question is not if Greene and Torkelson will land in Detroit in 2022, but when?
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