The Detroit Tigers come into August in one of the most interesting positions in all of baseball. Many people consider the Tigers to be a consistent disappointment, as it seems like any time they get close to contention, they immediately disappoint fans. After making recent splashes in the free agent market including Javier Báez, and Eduardo Rodriguez, fans expected them to only be a few players away from being a dangerous team. However, the Tigers are currently almost 10 games under .500. But, there is hope however. The Tigers have an encouraging farm system including prospects such as Jackson Jobe, Jace Jung, Max Clark, and more. But, their biggest pair of impact players may be in the MLB level already. These sluggers are Riley Greene and Spencer Torkelson. In today’s article, we’ll be covering this pair of hitters, and how they may be baseball’s next big thing.

Riley Greene: Baseball’s Next Big Outfielder

Riley Greene has always been a top prospect, and player throughout his time in the MiLB, so it’s really no surprise that the 22-year-old is playing perfectly up to expectation in 2023.

Greene made his highly anticipated MLB debut last season for the Detroit Tigers. Greene would play in 93 games during his rookie season, where he would show a lot of promise to fans all across the baseball world. In this 93 game span, Greene would hit 5 homers, 8.6% BB%, 28.7% K%, .316 xwOBA, 98 wRC+, and a 0.8 fWAR. Although these numbers could certainly be better, they were only a sign of things to come.

Greene would show a large amount of promise when it came to his batted ball rates during his rookie campaign. Greene would maintain a pretty strong barrel rate of 9.3%, a mark that’s impressive for anyone, let alone Greene who had been mostly considered a contact driven hitter in the minors. Greene would also show his ability to hit the ball hard, as he would post a hard hit percentage of 45.2% during his rookie season. But, as Greene looks to close out his sophomore 2023 season shortly, we can see just how far he’s come in about a years time.

So far this season, Greene has been spectacular, and he had many people calling him an all-star snub, as he was not chosen to represent the Detroit Tigers during the mid-summer classic. In 79 games so far this season, Greene has been incredible, as he’s hit 10 homers, 8.9% BB%, 27.6% K%, .371 xwOBA, 135 wRC+, and a 2.4 fWAR. As you can see, Greene has played even better than most fans probably could’ve dreamed of seeing from the young star. Greene has shown an incredible amount of maturity in his game, especially for this just being his second big league season.

Greene would also improve his very impressive batted ball numbers from 2022, to even more impressive marks this season. Even while battling some injuries this season, Greene has raised his barrel percentage from 9.3%, to an incredible 12.2%. Greene has also raised his hard hit percentage from 45.2%, to 48.4%. Greene would also raise his sweet spot percentage from 32%, to 38% in 2023, a mark that shows just how much he’s improved at hitting the baseball hard. Greene has also raised his average launch angle from 2.8 degrees, to 6.4 degrees.

Barrel rates, hard hit rates, and launch angle adjustments however are not the only place where Greene has succeeded thus far. Greene has also lowered his ground ball rate from 56% to 48.4%. While still doing this, he’s also improved his line drive rate from 20.1% to 27.7%, a super impressive improvement.

Riley Greene has truly been a bright spot for the Detroit Tigers so far in 2023, and it’s truly been a sight to see. Being a top 5 selection always brings an incredible amount of pressure, but Greene hasn’t let this affect him in the slightest. But, Greene isn’t the only improving slugger in the Motor City, as another player with just as much hype around his name is also performing far beyond his 2022 level.

Spencer Torkelson: Built for Success

Due to being the number one overall selection back in the 2020 MLB Draft, Spencer Torkelson has always been under a lot of pressure. But, nothing could compare to the pressure you feel after under preforming at the big league level, especially with the high expectations he has had put on him.

Torkelson would really struggle during his first MLB season in 2022, as he would hit 8 homers, 9.2% BB%, 24.5% K%, .305 xwOBA, 76 wRC+, -1.0 fWAR, 8.4% barrel percentage, and a 41.4% hard hit percentage. As you can see, these numbers are honestly no where near what people expected from Torkelson in his first taste of the MLB, especially with a 110 game sample size to work with. However, similarly to Greene, Torkelson would also show a decent amount of promise during his rookie season.

As previously mentioned, Torkelson would record a barrel percentage of 8.4% during his rookie season, which is a solid mark, and not far below what Greene would record during his rookie season. While this is indeed a solid mark like I just stated, this was mainly disappointing due to the fact that Torkelson was widely regarded to be one of the better power hitters in Minor League Baseball when he was a prospect. Torkelson would however gain praise from analytics experts due to his solid swing decisions. Torkelson would post a zone swing percentage of just under 70%, which is above league average. In addition, Torkelson would appear to have a little bad luck on his side during the 2022 season, as his xwOBA of .305 would be far above his actual wOBA of .272. But, his 2023 season has shown a tremendous amount of improvement thus far.

So far this season, Torkelson has majorly improved in all aspects of his offensive metrics. To this point, Torkelson has hit 21 homers, 9.5% BB%, 24.4% K%, .351 xwOBA, 104 wRC+, 0.8 fWAR, 14.3% barrel percentage, and a 52.6% hard hit percentage. As you can see, Torkelson has improved exponentially from his rookie season. A lot of parts of his game remain very interesting this year, especially how he can be so good but also just above league average in other areas.

One of these aspects where Torkelson is the most interesting is his barrel rates. The barrel percentage mark of 14.3% which I previously mentioned, is not only spectacular, but also one of the best rates in all of baseball. Torkelson currently ranks 21st in all of baseball on the statcast leaderboard for hard hits, barrel rates, and more. The most interesting part about Torkelson ranking this high? Torkelson is currently ranked above some of the best hitters in baseball, including Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, Bryce Harper, and more. This is not only very impressive, but a clear demonstration of just how good Torkelson has been this season.

Torkelson’s rise in home runs, among other hard hits could partially be due to his launch angle adjustments. Torkelson raised his average launch angle from 15 degrees in 2022, to 17.6 degrees in 2023, which could definitely be an indicator for his power resurgence. Torkelson has also made all of these power adjustments, while still maintaining his elite plate discipline and eye at the plate. Torkelson’s plate discipline metrics all pretty much have stayed similar to his metrics during his rookie season, and they are still elite.

No matter which way you spin it, Spencer Torkelson is severely outperforming expectations people had for him this season, and it’s been a joy to see. Torkelson was drafted number one overall for a reason, and it’s special to see the Tigers getting what they expected out of Torkelson. But, this next hitter may be even better, and he’s flown the most under the radar out of the three of these young sluggers.

Kerry Carpenter: The Most Underrated Slugger in Baseball

Kerry Carpenter may not be a name most fans are familiar with yet, but he’s someone fans should without a doubt learn more about. Carpenter was a 19th round selection in the 2019 MLB Draft, and it’s fair to say he’s completely played above expectations for the Tigers so far. Carpenter would make his MLB debut during the 2022 season, and he played pretty solid baseball. Carpenter would play in just 31 games, but would hit 6 homers, 5.3% BB%, 28.3% K%, .342 wOBA, 126 wRC+. 0.5 fWAR, 11.1% barrel percentage, and a 36.1% hard hit percentage. As you can see, Carpenter was honestly a really solid power option for the Tigers in 2022. But, with his limited games played in 2022, there aren’t many true metrics to look too closely into due to the small size, so we’re going to examine his 2023 season even closer.

So far this season, Carpenter has played in 77 games for the Tigers, and he has been incredible. Carpenter has hit 16 homers, 7.4% BB%, 21.8% K%, .369 wOBA, 139 wRC+, 1.8 fWAR, 11.1% barrel percentage, and a 42.9% hard hit percentage. As you can see, Carpenter has been a truly spectacular hitter for the Tigers, which is even more special when you remember he’s only played in 77 games.

Carpenter is currently responsible for the third highest fWAR on the Tigers, and this isn’t even close to the only accolade Carpenter can walk away with this season. Carpenter, similarly to Torkelson and Greene, ranks very highly on the statcast leaderboard for hard hits, barrel rates, and more. For this category, he currently ranks 60th in all of baseball, ahead of stars such as Francisco Lindor, Bo Bichette, and more. Carpenter is also barely below Juan Soto, who is ranked at 57 on this leaderboard. Carpenter also has a solid plate discipline ability, a tool that’ll only get better with age. Carpenter’s zone swing percentage is currently 71.5%, which is a pretty solid mark, and only an indication of things to come.

Carpenter has some of the most raw power in all of Major League baseball, and it’s time fans start to take notice sooner rather than later. Carpenter is a very gifted hitter, and he’s only going to get better with time. Carpenter will without a doubt be a part of the Tigers bright future, and he’ll be a treat to watch for years to come.

Conclusion

Between these three Tigers sluggers, they are currently responsible for a combined 5.4 fWAR, which may not sound like a lot, but it’s a good portion of the total fWAR accumulated by Tigers players this season. Riley Greene has some of the best tools in all of Major League Baseball, and alongside power threats such as Carpenter and Torkelson, this trio is a scary group for the Tigers next playoff run. All three of these hitters are beyond talented as we’ve shown in this article, and with they’re young ages, the sky is the limit for these three players. There is something brewing in the Motor City, and these three players will be something special for years to come.