
Position Players of Note
Dominic Ficociello and Kody Eaves
There’s also Dominic Ficociello and Kody Eaves. A pair of potential utility options, the duo are both turning in productive seasons.
Ficociello, who impressed for the Tigers in Spring Training, is batting .294 with a .341 on-base percentage. The former 12th-round pick has also added 11 runs scored, 10 extra base hits and nine RBI in 132 plate appearances.
The 25-year-old has seen time at first base, third base and left field since the start of the 2016 campaign.
Meanwhile, Eaves is hitting a blistering .340 in an admittedly small sample size of 59 plate appearances. Still, it’s good to see the infielder turning in a high batting average. That’s been about the only thing missing from his stat line in the past few years.
Since debuting in Anaheim’s system in 2012, Eaves has registered 264 runs scored, 213 RBI, 102 doubles, 81 stolen bases, 36 home runs and 33 triples in 495 games.
The career .257 hitter is on track to log career highs in on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS and in batting average.
Mike Gerber
Joining Stewart in the outfield is Mike Gerber. The former 15th-round pick has been extremely productive in his minor league career so far, hitting his way onto Detroit’s list of best prospects.
Gerber checked in at sixth in both 2016 and 2017 on Motor City Bengals’ list of the top Detroit Tigers prospects thanks his penchant for raking at the dish.
This season has been no different.
The outfielder is batting .317 with a .368 on-base percentage and a .504 slugging percentage. He’s chipped in with 24 runs scored, 17 RBI, 11 doubles, five home runs and five RBI.
He’s also posted a blistering .391 wOBA and an equally excellent 145 wRC+.
Grayson Greiner
One of a number of intriguing prospects with the SeaWolves, Grayson Greiner could give the Tigers another option behind the dish to pair with James McCann over the long haul.
A solid defensive catcher, Greiner is hitting just .200 with a .539 OPS. However, he did bat .293 with a .763 OPS in 91 games last season, so there’s hope for a rebound.
The backstop is one of many potential, long-term backups for McCann, joining the likes of Alex Avila, John Hicks, Arvicent Perez and Bryan Holaday.