Starting spots for Tigers' Top 30 prospects
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With the 2019 Minor League Baseball season getting underway, here's a look at where the Tigers' Top 30 prospects are starting the year. We also identify the prospect who just missed the Top 30 list, a player who didn't make the big league Opening Day roster but should make an impact this year, a prospect who is ready to break out in 2019 and the team's best defensive prospect.
1) Casey Mize (MLB No. 17), RHP -- Lakeland Tigers (A Adv)
2) Matt Manning (MLB No. 51), RHP -- Erie SeaWolves (AA)
3) Franklin Perez (MLB No. 77), RHP -- Lakeland Tigers (A Adv) -- IL
4) Isaac Paredes, SS -- Erie SeaWolves (AA)
5) Daz Cameron, OF -- Toledo Mud Hens (AAA)
6) Beau Burrows, RHP -- Toledo Mud Hens (AAA
7) Willi Castro, SS -- Toledo Mud Hens (AAA)
8) Christin Stewart, OF -- Detroit Tigers (MLB)
9) Parker Meadows, OF -- West Michigan White Caps (A)
10) Alex Faedo, RHP -- Erie SeaWolves (AA)
11) Kyle Funkhouser, RHP -- Toledo Mud Hens (AAA)
12) Wenceel Perez, SS -- West Michigan White Caps (A)
13) Jake Rogers, C -- Erie SeaWolves (AA)
14) Kody Clemens, 2B -- Lakeland Tigers (A Adv)
15) Sergio Alcantara, SS -- Erie SeaWolves (AA)
16) Logan Shore, RHP -- Erie SeaWolves (AA)
17) Jacob Robson, OF -- Toledo Mud Hens (AAA)
18) Dawel Lugo, 2B -- Toledo Mud Hens (AAA)
19) Spencer Turnbull, RHP -- Detroit Tigers (MLB)
20) Tarik Skubal, LHP -- Lakeland Tigers (A Adv)
21) Bryan Garcia, RHP -- Toledo Mud Hens (AAA) -- IL
22) Daniel Woodrow, OF -- Toledo Mud Hens (AAA)
23) Brock Deatherage, OF -- Lakeland Tigers (A Adv)
24) Anthony Castro, RHP -- Erie SeaWolves (AA)
25) Zac Houston, RHP -- Toledo Mud Hens (AAA)
26) Gregory Soto, LHP -- Suspended
27) Sandy Baez, RHP -- Toledo Mud Hens (AAA)
28) Matt Hall, LHP -- Toledo Mud Hens (AAA)
29) Dustin Peterson, OF -- Detroit Tigers (MLB)
30) Jose Azocar, OF -- Erie SeaWolves (AA)
Just missed Top 30: John Schrieber
The 6-foot-3, 215-pounder continued his climb of the Minors in 2018, logging 18 saves with a 2.48 ERA while averaging a strikeout-per-inning across 49 appearances in Double-A. His heater tops out around 92 mph because he works from a near-sidearm slot that also makes his slider highly effective against right-handed hitters.
Impact prospect: Daz Cameron
After ascending three levels and finishing the 2018 season in Triple-A, Cameron was among the most impressive Tigers prospects in camp this spring as he hit .357 with seven extra-base hits in 16 games. He’s nearly ready for the Major Leagues, and all signs point to him taking over as Detroit’s center fielder in the coming year.
Breakout prospect: Wenceel Perez
Signed for $550,000 in July 2016 out of the Dominican Republic, Perez climbed his way up three levels in his United States debut, finishing the season as an 18-year-old in the Class A Midwest League -- and hitting .309 over 16 games there. He swings the bat well from both sides of the plate, with plus speed that makes him a threat on the basepaths and the requisite defensive chops to stick at shortstop.
Best defensive prospect: Jake Rogers
The Tigers got Rogers as part of the Justin Verlander deal, and in Rogers' first full season with the organization, he cemented himself as the game's best defensive catching prospect, earning a spot on MLB Pipeline's All-Defense Team for the second year in a row. He threw out 55.6 percent of potential basestealers in 2018, upping his career rate to 48.5 percent.