Detroit Tigers Prospects: No. 20 Adinso Reyes

Adinso Reyes opened some eyes in the MLB prospect community after a strong showing in the Dominican Summer League in 2019. He checks in at number twenty on our inaugural Detroit Tigers prospects list.

Welcome to the first-ever installment of the Motor City Bengals Top 20 Detroit Tigers prospects. The MCB staff has compiled our prospect lists and we will be releasing our consensus rankings, along with a breakdown of each player, in a series of articles in the coming days. We kick off the list at number 20 with Adinso Reyes.

Seemingly hearing the pleas of fans who saw other organizations consistently picking up talent in the International market, the Detroit Tigers finally spent big in International Free Agency in 2018. Along with fellow Detroit Tigers prospect Jose De La Cruz, Reyes represented the crown jewel of the Tigers IFA haul, signing for $1.45M. Industry sources had ranked Reyes the 19th best prospect in the IFA market.

Fast forward three years and Reyes is entering 2021 primed for a breakout as he transitions to baseball in the States. He set the Dominican Summer League on fire in 2018, slashing .331/.379/.508 across 62 games and quickly found himself rising on Tigers prospect lists. Now 19 years old, Reyes will likely start the season in the Gulf Coast League, where he will look to continue his progress after the lost 2020 season.

Adinso Reyes Strengths

The bat is the calling card for Adinso Reyes. Even as a raw 19-year-old, Reyes has shown solid offensive instincts and a mature approach at the plate. He has good balance in his stance and rotates his hips well to generate quick bat speed.

Reyes showcased the ability to turn his obvious raw power into game production in 2019, hitting 7 home runs in 62 games. He has the ability to hit the ball out to all fields and still has physical projection to add more power as he fills out. As he continues to get stronger and develop at the plate, it’s easy to dream on his power becoming his most prominent tool.

Adinso Reyes Weaknesses

When the Tigers signed Adinso Reyes, they made it clear that they planned to keep him at shortstop as he worked his way up through the minor league system. Tigers International Operations Director Tom Moore said at the time, “He’s an athletic kid, and obviously as we’ve seen over the recent time in the big leagues, there are some physical shortstops. For us, the athleticism is what makes us think he’s going to play at short. And we’re really excited about the bat speed. He hits to all fields and with power to all fields.” So far, they have held true to their word, allowing Reyes to play all 62 of his Dominican Summer League games at shortstop.

Despite the willingness to try him at shortstop, it is expected that Reyes will eventually need to transition to third base or corner outfield. He is already listed at a thick 6’1 210 and will continue to fill out as he gets older, which will limit his quickness in the field. His arm is certainly not plus, but it may be passable enough to allow him to man third base in the future.

Reyes also has some swing and miss in his offensive game. He whiffed at a 21 percent clip in 2019 and struggled some with pitch recognition. Limiting his strikeouts will be key to his development as he works to tap into his power.

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Our Take on Adinso Reyes

First and foremost, Adinso Reyes is physically impressive for his age. He looks strong in the batter’s box and can generate bat speed that should strike fear into opposing pitchers. There are certainly some tools here on the offensive side for the Tigers player development to shape and mold into an MLB bat over the next several years. While you can’t put too much stock into a 62 game sample size in the DSL, it’s encouraging that his professional career is off to a strong start.

Though the Tigers may still be humoring Reyes with shortstop reps, there’s no way he ends up there in the future. Reports of strong defensive instincts in the infield is a good sign for his ability to stick at third base, but he will have to prove himself there.

All in all, Reyes is a high-upside, low-floor, bat-first prospect that has intriguing offensive tools. He will be fun to keep an eye on as he develops over the next several years, and it would not be a surprise to see him shoot up prospect lists if he is able to carry his strong DSL performance into A ball.