Detroit Tigers: Top 10 Prospects Following 2016 Season

5. Kyle Funkhouser

Position: Starting Pitcher
2016 Affiliate: Connecticut Tigers

While the Detroit Tigers’ first round pick in 2016 was protected should they sign any premier free agents, the team’s second and third round selections were not.

Thanks to the signings of Jordan Zimmermann and Justin Upton, the Tigers next-highest pick came in the fourth round.

As it stands, Detroit may have come away with a steal in said fourth round.

Kyle Funkhouser, who was a first-round pick of the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2015, was selected by the Tigers.

2016 Stats

After 13 starts for Connecticut, the right-hander’s numbers very much resembled those of a first-round pick. Over 37.1 innings, Funkhouser struck out 34 while only allowing eight walks. His ERA came in at 2.65 while in the New York-Penn league.

Future Role

If the Louisville product can regain the form that made him a first-round pick last year, Funkhouser will eventually pitch out of the Tigers rotation.

He joins a future rotation that will also consist of some combination of fellow 2016 draftee Matt Manning, Justin Verlander, Michael Fulmer, Daniel Norris, Matt Boyd and Jordan Zimmermann.

All of a sudden, the future is very bright for the Detroit Tigers.