Highly-Paid Detroit Tigers Rookie Has Impressed A.J. Hinch with ‘Even Keel’
Everywhere Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch looks, he sees a young player.
Some of them are recent call-ups like third baseman Jace Jung, shortstop Trey Sweeney and catcher Dillon Dingler.
Others have been with the Tigers all season like second baseman Colt Keith.
Detroit created great expectations for Keith this offseason when they agreed to a massive contract with him, even though the 23-year-old hadn’t played a Major League game.
The six-year deal was worth $28.6 million with club options in 2030, 2031 and 2032.
Keith and the Tigers signed a six-year contract worth $28,642,500 that includes club options for the 2030, 2031, and 2032 seasons. With options and escalators, it could be worth $82 million. It was the largest deal ever signed by a Tiger before his MLB debut.
So far, so good for the Detroit’s fifth-round pick in the 2020 MLB Draft who eventually rose to baseball’s No. 2 prospect before the season.
Keith has been solid at the plate, as he’s slashed .260/.311/.389/.700 with 12 home runs and 52 RBI.
Hinch says Keith has met the expectations he had for the youngster coming into the season in an interview with MLB Network.
“He expects high things from himself and he that did early because he signed one of those contracts that put a spotlight on him from the get-go, you know?” Hinch said.
The Tigers have built a pipeline of young players that could lift the franchise up and eventually lead them to their first postseason appearance since 2014. It may not happen this season, but the young movement in Motown has given everyone in the city reason for hope in the future.
Part of how he relaxes young players, Hinch says, is to let them know that it’s Ok to fail on the Major League level. And, for a while, Keith did.
In April he slashed just .163/.221/.175 with no home runs and five RBI.
Then he caught fire in May with a slash of .342/.388/.493 with two home runs and 14 RBI.
Keith didn’t panic after a poor start, Hinch said.
“It's just about building your process and building your routines,” Hinch said. “And he stuck with it. … I've been very impressed with how even keel he’s been.”
Keith put himself in position for this after a sensational 2023 with Double-A Erie and Triple-A Toledo that led to his selection the MLB Futures Game. Baseball America named him the 2023 Tigers Minor League Player of the Year.
Major League accolades may be coming in the future.
MATT POSTINS