Tigers announce 60-man player pool
DETROIT -- Tigers pitching prospects Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal, Matt Manning and Alex Faedo are headed to Detroit this week. So is top outfield prospect Riley Greene and recent Draft pick Dillon Dingler. Spencer Torkelson will be there, too.
The Tigers on Sunday announced 58 members of their 60-man player pool for the upcoming season. As expected, it’s a prospect-heavy list as the team tries to keep its young talent developing while also preparing the big league club for a 60-game season that begins next month.
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Nine of the Tigers’ top 10 prospects in MLB Pipeline’s system rankings from this spring will be part of Summer Camp. The lone exception, left-hander Joey Wentz, is rehabbing after undergoing Tommy John surgery in March.
Prospects on the 60-man player pool only accumulate service time if they’re added to the active roster. Thus, the Tigers’ decision to bring their top pitching prospects has no impact on their service time unless they’re called up to pitch at some point during the season.
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The Tigers initially left two spots open, and as expected, one went to Torkelson, the top overall pick from the 2020 MLB Draft. The slugging corner infielder signed with Detroit on Tuesday.
The Tigers will have their entire player pool working out at Comerica Park later this week as Summer Camp begins. Once Detroit whittles down its 30-man Opening Day roster, the rest of the pool will work out at the team’s alternate training site, Toledo’s Fifth Third Field. Players are scheduled to report beginning Wednesday ahead of Friday’s first workout for pitchers and catchers.
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Pitchers (30): Tim Adleman, Dario Agrazal, Tyler Alexander, Nolan Blackwood, Matthew Boyd, Beau Burrows, Anthony Castro, Shao-Ching Chiang, Jose Cisnero, Alex Faedo, Buck Farmer, Michael Fulmer, Kyle Funkhouser, Bryan Garcia, Rony Garcia, Zack Godley, Joe Jiménez, Matt Manning, David McKay, Casey Mize, Daniel Norris, Iván Nova, Franklin Perez, Nick Ramirez, Héctor Santiago, John Schreiber, Tarik Skubal, Gregory Soto, Spencer Turnbull, Jordan Zimmermann
The Tigers had been expected to carry their top-ranked pitching prospects, having watched them all through Spring Training before it was suspended on March 12 due to the coronavirus pandemic. None are expected to make the Opening Day roster, but could see a callup to make their Major League debuts at some point. Manager Ron Gardenhire said he’ll open with a five-man rotation. Much of that should be set with Boyd, Norris, Nova, Zimmermann and Turnbull. The wild card is Fulmer, who has been cleared for game action after spending the last few months in Lakeland finishing his rehab from Tommy John surgery.
Catchers (6): Dillon Dingler, Grayson Greiner, Eric Haase, Brady Policelli, Jake Rogers, Austin Romine
The Tigers have depth here with Romine, Greiner, Haase and Rogers. The other two spots are about development, especially for Dingler, the Tigers’ second-round pick in this month’s Draft. He hasn’t caught since Ohio State’s season was suspended in March. Likewise, the Tigers want to continue to work with Policelli, who made an impression on Gardenhire and the staff as a potential superutility player.
Infielders (13): Sergio Alcántara, Miguel Cabrera, Jeimer Candelario, Willi Castro, C.J. Cron, Brandon Dixon, Niko Goodrum, Dawel Lugo, Jordy Mercer, Isaac Paredes, Jonathan Schoop, Frank Schwindel, Spencer Torkelson
No surprises here. The Tigers opted not to add second-base prospect Kody Clemens, who made a lot of game appearances early in Spring Training as an extra player but was not officially part of big league camp.
Outfielders (9): Jorge Bonifacio, Daz Cameron, Travis Demeritte, Riley Greene, Derek Hill, JaCoby Jones, Cameron Maybin, Victor Reyes, Christin Stewart
The Tigers will try to pick up where they left off from Spring Training with their outfield competition, which was fairly wide open beyond Maybin and Reyes. One notable omission was Troy Stokes Jr., who had a very good camp and was in the running for a roster spot.
Hill was expected to open the season in Toledo under normal circumstances. Many believe he could play in the big leagues right now defensively. Greene, the Tigers’ first-round pick in last year’s Draft, will try to continue his development after ending last season at Class A West Michigan.
Utility (1): Harold Castro
According to MLB's Operating Manual, all players on a 40-man roster “that the Club anticipates participating” during the season will be part of the player pool, while the rest will be made up of non-40-man roster players under contract. Any 40-man-roster players who are not included in a player pool (for example, maybe a prospect who isn’t deemed ready for the Majors) will still be paid during the season.
No team will be allowed to exceed the limit of 60 players in its player pool at any time during camp or the regular season.