Detroit Tigers prospect Colt Keith could be a diamond in the rough

The Detroit Tigers have plenty of prospects in the minors chomping at the bit to get their chance to play at the next level. While this ranges across many levels of the minor leagues, the Tigers should be excited about several of their prospects.

One of the prospects, in particular, Colt Keith, is someone that Detroit Tigers fans should keep their eyes on in the coming seasons. While prospects in the system may soon become trade bait, Keith is an under-the-radar prospect who’s quite young and has a lot of time on his side.

Back in the COVID-shortened 2020 MLB First-Year Amateur Player Draft, the Tigers opted to grab a high school infielder out of Biloxi, Mississippi, with their final selection in the fifth round of the draft.

While a fifth-round pick in other years is near the “top” of the draft class, which usually spans 40 names, Keith was the last player the team selected. He was a high-school player with a high ceiling and low risk that the Tigers could work through the system.

Detroit Tigers prospect Colt Keith should be on your radar.

The 20-year old infielder stands 6-foot-3 and weighs in at 211-pounds, and tends to roam the left side of the infield, though the Tigers have worked him in at second base as well. The belief with Keith is that he can stick it out on the left side if he develops some better defense.

When he was drafted, the bat was still pretty raw in terms of examination. However, Keith has shown why he was the Mississippi Gatorade Player of the Year back in 2018-19 for his high-school season performance. He’s posted some quality stats with the Tigers in his first year of affiliated ball.

Keith spent time with four Tigers affiliates in the summer of 2021, ranging from Rookie-ball to the High-A team in West Michigan. He spent the bulk of his time with the Single-A Lakeland Flying Tigers, where he hit .320/.327/.422 over 44 games played.

He made the jump to High-A, where he hit .162/.250/.250 over 18 games played with the Whitecaps. The severe drop-off in stats is not great, but Keith showed that he was able to settle in and start seeing the ball quite well with the Lakeland affiliate.

For the Tigers, he’s someone whose bat should continue to improve, and he should be able to settle in and keep moving through the ranks of the organization. He may not end up being some three or four-hitter in the Tigers lineup, but he is someone who’s flying under the radar and should be on yours moving forward.

Keep an eye on Keith as he makes his way through the Tigers organization.