Detroit Tigers minor league tools series: Best Power

Detroit Tigers Best Power Tools: Number 1

1 – Spencer Torkelson – 1B/3B

Who else could it be? Spencer Torkelson is one of the most celebrated and prolific power hitters in college baseball history, and he brought that power bat with him into his first year of pro ball, blasting 30 home runs and another 29 doubles as he climbed from High-A West Michigan to Triple-A Toledo. Torkelson isn’t a physical marvel with otherworldly raw power like Giancarlo Stanton or Shohei Ohtani, but he does own legitimate plus-plus pop, and he gets to almost all of it in games thanks to a disciplined approach and a remarkably consistent swing. He will take early count strikes he can’t crush, and he lays off borderline offerings to get into favorable counts. Torkelson should threaten to hit 30+ home runs a year in the big leagues, and he may even hit 40 once or twice in his prime. He’s the best power-hitting prospect in the Detroit Tigers system, and arguably the best in all of minor-league baseball.