Detroit Tigers: Top 20 prospects for 2022 – Part Two

Welcome to Motor City Bengals’ Top 20 Detroit Tigers Prospects for 2022.

Yesterday we published the first half of our Detroit Tigers Top 20 prospects list, and today we finish with prospects 10 through 1.

If you missed the first list and/or don’t feel like going back to read it, here’s how the process works: Six MCB contributors created independent lists of their top 25 Detroit Tigers prospects, and we averaged those rankings together to get our top 20.

We’ve included a small blurb about each player below the picture, but keep an eye out for upcoming stories on players who just missed our list, as well as detailed profiles on each of the top 20 prospects in the system.

Detroit Tigers No. 10 Prospect – Izaac Pacheco – IF

Izaac Pacheco was Detroit’s third pick in the 2021 MLB Draft (39th overall), and as a fixture on the high-school showcase circuit with a commitment to Texas A&M, he had some extra negotiating power. His $2.75 million bonus was actually the 2nd highest given out by the club, and the 25th highest received by any player in the draft. The early returns on that investment weren’t great, as Pacheco had some strikeout issues, and reportedly struggled against pedestrian pitching. But it’s important not to put too much stock into a high-school hitter’s pro debut, particularly when we’re talking about 125 plate appearances.

Pacheco stands out most for his size and power — he’s 6’4 and weighs 225 lbs. — and he seemingly gets all that mass behind his lefty bat, producing plus-plus raw power in batting practice. Despite his stature, Pacheco is surprisingly agile and athletic on defense, with average speed, solid hands, and a strong arm. He’s a lock to move off shortstop, but if he stays roughly the same size he may be able to provide average defense at third base. There’s a decent chance he outgrows the left side of the infield entirely, though, which places more emphasis on the development of a hit tool that projects to below-average. Pacheco has the right mix of patience and power to be productive even with a lackluster hit tool, but he’ll need to make far more contact in the future. He figures to return to rookie ball next year.

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