Detroit Tigers: 3 prospects to watch in the College World Series Final

Some potential Detroit Tigers’ draftees are playing for a national title

The College World Series championship begins tonight in Omaha, as the Ole Miss Rebels and the Oklahoma Sooners will battle it out in a winner-take-all three-game series. While there probably aren’t any players the Detroit Tigers might take with the 12th overall pick in this championship series, there are still a few names that fans should keep their eye on.

The 2022 MLB Draft is about three weeks away now, and while the nuance of being able to watch a player your favorite team just drafted in the College World Series is no more, it’s still fun to watch players that your team could draft.

Neither of these teams have any “elite” prospects per say, but there are still some interesting names to look out for come draft time. Here are three prospects to watch in the College World Series championship.

INF Peyton Graham, Oklahoma

Graham wasn’t very heavily recruited coming out of high school, but quickly made a name for himself with the Sooners, slashing .358/.457/.612 during his COVID-shortened 2020 freshman season. He played third base his first two years in Norman, but switched to shortstop this season. Scouts believe there is a good chance he moves back to the hot corner in pro ball.

Here’s how MLB Pipeline thinks Graham profiles offensively:

"“Though Graham has good feel for the barrel, he has gotten more aggressive with his right-handed swing as his college career has progressed and he doesn’t make consistent contact against anything beyond fastballs. He did show signs of settling down some in the second half of the college season and has the bat speed and projectable strength to develop into a solid power hitter without swinging for the fences. He’s also a plus runner who can steal a few bases.”"

Graham struck out at a 27% clip about halfway through the season, but Keith Law from The Athletic reports a swing change that led him to cut down his strikeout rate and hit for more power. Law also notes that Graham struggles with breaking balls.

The Detroit Tigers have shown no hesitation in drafting college hitters that struggle to hit breaking balls before—Nick Quintana comes to mind. The hope is that Graham can continue to work on his swing and learn to adapt to sliders and curveballs.

Graham has been mocked to the Tigers at 51st overall before. Recent mock drafts don’t have him going in the first round, although it’s always possible a team gets excited.