Detroit Tigers: Added talent to Toledo could mean more debuts
By Tyler Kotila
The Detroit Tigers have announced that the organization has added more talent to the alternate training site, which could mean more debuts.
Detroit Tigers General Manager (GM) Al Avila has announced that they have placed some prospects in Toledo at the alternate training site. There have been four prospects added to the 60-man Player Pool, with three of them being pitchers and one outfielder.
The Tigers today announced that RHP’s Jason Foley, Logan Shore and Alex Lange and OF Parker Meadows have been added to the 60-man player pool.
— Tigers PR (@DetroitTigersPR) September 3, 2020
The best prospect of the four is the outfielder, Parker Meadows, who is ranked twelfth on the organization’s top thirty list on MLB Pipeline. The other three additions are pitchers, all right-handed pitchers, including one from the Nicholas Castellanos trade, Alex Lange.
This flurry of additions to the Tigers 60-man Player Pool could mean that the Tigers are going to be giving some prospects chances to make their big league debuts. While somehow staying alive in the 2020 postseason race, the Tigers may try out some of the youngsters.
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So far this season, the Tigers already made the monumental announcement to call up Casey Mize and Tarik Skubal to join the rotation.
They also have brought up Isaac Paredes to join the organization’s lineup, and now Derek Hill gets his chance to strut his stuff in the big leagues.
Given all of the debuts so far this season, what is stopping the Tigers from giving some other players the chance to show what they’re capable of in the big leagues?
With another set of prospects added to the alternate training site, it seems Al is trying to do one of two things:
- Give these four players a chance to work with the Tigers organization rather than fending for themselves this offseason like some of the prospects.
- Add players to the alternate training site to cover for injuries, the trade deadline, and also allow for the Tigers to call up some prospects.
These four players are not the high-profile prospects, but still will be allowed to get some work in along the organization’s other top talents in Toledo.
Take a further look at the four players the Detroit Tigers added to the alternate training site:
Jason Foley- RHP
The Tigers added right-handed pitcher Jason Foley who is a 24-year old reliever in the organization. He has been with the organization three seasons with the organization, with a gap in 2018 where he underwent Tommy John Surgery.
He bounced back, and in 2019 Foley played for Single-A Lakeland, appearing in 36 games with 44 innings pitched. He posted a 3.89 ERA, a 1.43 WHIP, walking 17 hitters, and punching out 43 as well.
He may not be a candidate for a debut, but he could slide into someone’s spot at the alternate training site in Toledo; he is a tall, hard-throwing reliever that is looking to get some work in.
Alex Lange- RHP
The second arm that the Tigers added to their 60-man roster was Alex Lange, a piece from the Nicholas Castellanos trade with the Chicago Cubs. The 24-year old is a product of Louisiana State, part of that pipeline of LSU players the Tigers currently have.
While with the Tigers, Lange spent his time in Double-A with the Lake Erie Seawolves, where he pitched in nine games, totaling 15.2 innings pitched. He had a 3.45 ERA, a 1.34 WHIP; however, he did walk eight and allowed 13 hits, but struck out 15 during the 2019 season.
With offspeed being the name of the game for Lange, he capitalizes on his offspeed pitches, and being in a relief role with the Tigers; he can use this to his advantage. The Tigers will allow him to get some work in at Toledo, which should work to his advantage.
Parker Meadows- OF/LHH
Brother of Tampa Bay Rays outfielder Austin Meadows, Parker Meadows, will get his chance to train at the alternate training site. He has been ranked as the twelfth best prospect in the organization, and at just 20 years old, has a lot of future projectability and potential value.
The 6-foot-5 outfielder spent his 2019 season at the Single-A level with the West Michigan Whitecaps, where he hit .221/.296/.312 with seven home runs and 40 RBI. He has a long way to go, but the outfielder shows some exciting traits at the plate.
Meadows has the ability to drive the ball well, especially pull-side. If he can cut down on strikeouts and continue to develop, eventually catching some fire, he could become a threat in the big leagues down the line. This chance to work with some of the organization’s best talents will help him in this quest.
Logan Shore- RHP
The fourth player who was listed as heading to the alternate site in Toledo was starter Logan Shore. The 25-year old was sent to the Tigers as a player to be named later (PTBNL) in the Mike Fiers trade.
Shore is a starting pitcher who spent his 2019 season at the Double-A level with the Erie Seawolves. He pitched in 23 games, making 16 starts with a 3.43 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP on the 2019 season.
At the alternate training site in Toledo, he will be able to try and showcase his stuff with the organization’s best prospects training, and staying fresh. Shore is not a top prospect for anything, but he gets his chance at the alternate training site.
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The Detroit Tigers are adding players to their alternate training site, and this move could allow the organization some wiggle room to keep letting their prospects stay fresh.