Detroit Tigers: Who is Victor Alcantara?

The Detroit Tigers kissed Cameron Maybin good-bye earlier today in exchange for a right-handed pitcher named Victor Alcantara. And with that, the Hot Stove season begins.

This young 23-year-old pitcher has yet to throw in the Major Leagues but the Detroit Tigers scouts must have seen something they really like.

In reality, Maybin’s numbers in 2016 were nothing special, so trading for a young prospect makes sense. What did the scouts see in the young pitcher? Hopefully, they saw something more than the reports have shown about him.

Alcantara is a 6’2, 190 lb. right-handed pitcher from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The Los Angeles Angels signed him in 2011 when he was just a teenager. He has played in Rookie, Single-A, and Double-A teams with the Angels.

Up-and-Down Prospect

Back in May, Troy Schulte with MiLB commented on Alcantara’s status as a prospect with the Angels. In May, he was ranked as the #4 prospect. Alcantara has spent his time in the Minor Leagues building his four pitches. In 2014, he played in the All-Star Futures Game and he made it onto the 40-man roster at the end of 2015.

In February, Fangraphs named Alcantara as the #6 prospect with the Angels. He can reach the upper 90s with his fastball. Fangraphs questioned his command, but 10 months after their evaluation, he may have improved. They did like his fastball and slider, especially out of the bullpen. Fangraphs ranked his fastball as an above-average and plus pitch. However, they ranked his command and other pitches as average or platoon-quality.

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Time in the Fall Leagues

According to our friends at Halo Hangout, Alcantara is playing the fall league in Arizona with the Scottsdale Scorpions. He has only pitched out of the bullpen, but hasn’t been putting on much of a show. However, in his season at Double-A Arkansas Travelers, he finished with a 4.30 ERA and a 1.63 WHIP. In 111 innings, he walked 57 batters and K’d 75.

By picking up a young pitcher like Alcantara and trading away a speedy center fielder, the Tigers have clearly sent a message. If the Tigers are planning on using Alcantara as a bullpen pitcher, there is a possibility that other bullpen pitchers will be on their way out. With Cameron Maybin gone, there is now an opening for a center fielder in Detroit. My prediction is that JaCoby Jones will show up in center field in 2017.

Next: WS Game 7: GOAT

This early move does show that Al Avila meant what he said when the Tigers were going to go with younger players. Even though Maybin brought some speed and he certainly brought some personality to the team, his numbers were just not worth the price to the Tigers. Hopefully, Alcantara can improve his stats because the last thing the Tigers need is another sub-par pitcher coming out of the bullpen. Now, the biggest question this trade leaves is who’s next? (I’m also wondering what the Angels are going to do with Maybin, especially since they already have Mike Trout).