Recently-Acquired Detroit Tigers Prospect Called ‘Unicorn’ by Top Publication
Last week the Detroit Tigers called up shortstop Trey Sweeney, one piece of the trade deadline deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers to send pitcher Jack Flaherty out west.
The other piece is at High-A West Michigan and, well, he’s turning heads.
Recently, Baseball America highlighted 15 power hitters 21 years old or younger that are in the minor leagues that have shown exceptional power at the plate. Their metric was 90th percentile exit velocity and all 15 hitters are among the top two percent in the category in the age group.
One of them was Tigers catching prospect Thayron Liranzo, who is now the Tigers’ No. 6 overall prospect after the trade per MLB Pipeline.
Liranzo’s 90th percentile exit velocity was exceptional. At 108.2 mph it was in the 99th percentile of the players sampled through July 15, which was before the trade.
But how Baseball America described Liranzo in the context of his position is what stands out for the future of Detroit behind the plate.
“A switch-hitting catcher with elite power is like a unicorn, but the Tigers may have acquired just that in Liranzo at this year’s trade deadline,” per the site’s scouting report.
In his first 15 games with the Tigers his numbers have blown up at West Michigan where he’s slashed .396/.547/.771/1.318 with four home runs and 13 RBI. With the Dodgers’ affiliate at Great Lakes, he slashed .220/.344/.356/.700 with seven home runs and 30 RBI.
The scouting report didn’t indicate why he struggled at Great Lakes. He makes excellent decisions at the plate, as he ranks in the top 20% in chase rate.
But, his monitoring his development timeline will be key, Baseball America’s experts said.
“…the track record of switch-hitters taking longer to develop may worry some, but it’s tough to find another young switch-hitter with this type of power,” per the report.
The Dodgers signed him as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic. He spent the 2021 season with the Dodgers’ Dominican Summer League team and then came stateside the following season to join their Arizona Complex League’s rookie team.
In 2023 he was promoted to the Dodgers’ Class-A affiliate in Rancho Cucamonga where his power numbers exploded. He hit 24 home runs and 70 RBI as he slashed .273/.400/.562/.962.
Sweeney, promoted last week, hit his first Major League home run on Wednesday. He was promoted along with homegrown Tigers prospect Jace Jung.
Another Tigers prospect, catcher Dillon Dingler, was promoted at the trade deadline. In a couple of years, Liranzo could be challenging him.
