Detroit Tigers Top 25 Prospects: Honorable Mentions

Detroit Tigers prospects like Michael Fulmer and James McCann have made a significant impact in recent years, playing key roles. Here are the players who just missed the top 25 in MCB’s top Tigers prospects.

Detroit Tigers fans have seen the team trade many of the organization’s top prospects in years past.

The likes of Devon Travis, Jake Thompson and Willy Adames have all been dealt to other franchises for Major League upgrades.

However, things are different now under general manager Al Avila.

Avila and the rest of the front office have drastically improved the team’s long-term outlook with the additions of Michael Fulmer, Matt Manning, Daniel Norris, Matt Boyd and Kyle Funkhouser through trades and the draft.

The team has also held on to top prospects like Christin Stewart, Derek Hill and Beau Burrows.

With a promising 2016 draft class just completing their respective first seasons in professional baseball, the Tigers are well on their way to a more sustainable future.

Here at Motor City Bengals, we’ll begin a countdown of the top 25 prospects in the organization heading into 2017. That begins tomorrow.

To get you ready, here are the honorable mentions who just missed out on the rankings.

Arvicent Perez

Age: 22
Position: Catcher

While James McCann is undoubtedly the Detroit Tigers catcher of the future, the team could use some depth behind him over the long haul.

John Hicks looks like a potential piece, but outside of the 27-year-old and Grayson Greiner, Detroit’s next best backstop prospect may be Arvicent Perez.

In 74 games with West Michigan, the 22-year-old hit an impressive .303 while contributing 30 RBI, 28 runs scored and 20 extra-base hits in 74 games.

Perez didn’t draw many walks (seven), but he didn’t strike out all that much either.

Over the span of 290 at-bats, the catcher went down on strikes only 36 times.

A.J. Simcox

Age: 22
Position: Shortstop

A college teammate of Christin Stewart, Simcox played with the slugging outfielder at Lakeland this season.

While the shortstop doesn’t have the power of his fellow prospect, he did turn in a solid season for the Flying Tigers in 2016.

Logging 527 at-bats in 127 games, Simcox hit .262 with 51 RBI, 19 doubles, seven stolen bases, five home runs, and five triples.

A solid defender, the Tennessee product’s on-base percentage slipped from .367 in his first season to .298 last year. He’ll need to draw more walks moving forward.

Dominic Ficociello

Age: 24
Position: Utility Player

After a solid season with Double-A Erie in 2016, Ficociello was invited to Major League Spring Training by the Tigers.

The former 12^th-round pick is capable of playing first base, second base and third base. Just last season with the SeaWolves, the prospect started receiving playing time in left field.

His offensive numbers—90 wRC+, .677 OPS, 38 RBI, 29 extra-base hits and five stolen bases in 123 games—don’t jump off the page, but Ficociello’s defensive flexibility should eventually help him reach the Majors.

Kevin Ziomek

Age: 24
Position: Starting Pitcher

Had it not been for a shoulder surgery in 2016, Kevin Ziomek would likely rank highly on our rankings of Tigers prospects.

The former second-round pick turned in a 3.43 ERA and 8.3 punch outs per nine frames in 2015 with Lakeland.

He was limited to just one start last season due to the injury after logging 154.2 innings the season before.

A healthy campaign will go a long ways for the 24-year-old, who turned in a 2.27 ERA and 11.1 strikeouts per nine innings in 2014. Ziomek also totaled 123 frames with West Michigan during the campaign.

Next: 4 Spring Training Invitees Who Could Make Tigers Roster

Should the starter rebound in 2017, he could very well rank significantly higher in the 2018 edition of MCB’s prospect list.