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Fan favorite Tigers prospect takes worrisome (but reasonable) nosedive in new ranking

ByKatrina Stebbins|
Detroit Tigers pitcher Beau Brieske shakes hands with catcher Thayron Liranzo after live batting practice during spring training at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Fla. on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025.
Detroit Tigers pitcher Beau Brieske shakes hands with catcher Thayron Liranzo after live batting practice during spring training at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Fla. on Thursday, Feb. 20, 2025. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

At the end of the day, the Tigers-Dodgers trade involving Jack Flaherty last year was a win for both teams, but the Tigers came out on top when they re-signed Flaherty in the offseason. The Dodgers got what they wanted, a rental pitcher who helped them win the World Series; the Tigers got two top prospects, one of whom helped Detroit on its own postseason run, and they ultimately got Flaherty back anyway.

Trey Sweeney has been solid this season, and his 22 RBI rank him fifth among Tigers hitters. Thayron Liranzo, the last piece in that trade, is No. 5 in the Tigers' pipeline this year, and his early success in High-A last year made him a quick fan favorite. He even received an invitation to spring training, making him one of the youngest Tigers in major league camp.

However, MLB Pipeline released a updated top 100 prospects ranking on May 11, and Liranzo took a conspicuous tumble down the list. He started the season at No. 73 in all of baseball, but slipped down to No. 86 with 20 games at Double-A under his belt. That 13-place drop was one of the most drastic of any of the prospects included.

Tigers top prospect Thayron Liranzo takes a big dip in MLB Pipeline's top 100 list

A look at Liranzo's stats this year make it pretty obvious why he fell. He's batting .179 with a .706 OPS with the SeaWolves in 24 games and is sitting on a 34.6% strikeout rate. He's still walking at a decent clip (19.2%), but his isolated slugging has also taken a turn for the worst, sitting at .190 in 104 plate appearances (when it was at .247 in 115 High-A plate appearances last year).

This isn't necessarily a reason for fans to sound the alarm or accuse Liranzo of being washed, but it does make him an even more interesting prospect to watch throughout the season in regard to if he'll be able to make adjustments and live up to the hype. He was solid not that long ago in the Arizona Fall League and was keeping up with prospects at higher levels, so hopefully whatever is going on with his swing will be a hurdle he can overcome.

Liranzo is still a fair ways away from the majors, but he could add a huge bat for a future Tigers lineup if he can just recover some of that power.

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