5 current (and former) Tigers prospects that have fallen from grace

The Detroit Tigers have had some prospects not work out over the years

The Detroit Tigers have had numerous players appear in top prospect lists during the course of this rebuild. Unfortunately, many of them haven't worked out, whether it be prospects acquired in trades or players that were drafted by the Tigers.

Today, we're going to look at five of those prospetcs. Keep in mind that some players have reached the big leagues and the jury is still out on them. Players such as Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal, Riley Greene, and Spencer Torkelson still have time to carve their own path.

We're going to focus on current and former prospects that we know for sure are not going to make an impact for the Detroit Tigers at the major league level. Let's take this painful trip down memory lane.

RHP Reese Olson

I was once a big believer in Reese Olson. His stuff is so good, especially his secondary pitches. He started this season in Triple-A, and it's been an absolute disaster.

Olson is currently 1-3 with an 8.44 ERA and 2.14 WHIP in 26. 2 IP so far this season. He has just eight fewer walks (20) than strikeouts (28). Opponents are hitting .330 against him this season.

He just can't command his fastball. and when you can't do that, opponents will just sit on your secondary pitches, rendering their effectiveness pretty useless. It appears his days as a starting pitcher in the Detroit Tigers system are numbered.

Theoretically he could still be a solid arm in the bullpen some day, but if he can't command his fastball, it's just hard to be a good pitcher.

RHP Beau Burrows

Burrows was Dave Dombrowski's final first-round pick back in 2015. He just never developed as a starter, so the Tigers moved him to the bullpen, where he also struggled to find success.

He aso struggled with command throughout his career. When he finally got to the big leagues, it was even worse. His K/9 matched his BB/9 in the majors (5.60).

Burrows has bounced around in the minors for a few teams the last couple of years, going from the Twins, to the Dodgers, to now being in the Braves' minor league system. The now-26-year-old has a 5.23 ERA with Atlanta's Triple-A affiliate this season.

Burrows was once a first-round pick out of high school for the Detroit Tigers. Now, his most memorable moment is getting sick on the mound during a game in 2021. I'll spare you all and not link to any video of that incident.

OF Christin Stewart

It's crazy to think that at one time, Christin Stewart was once considered one of the first hitting prospects the Tigers could build around. Everyone figured out pretty quickly that wasn't going to be the case.

Stewart was a first-rounder out of Tennessee in 2015. He was known for his power and smooth left-handed swing. After 51 homers combined between Double-A and Triple-A from 2017-18, he cracked the Tigers Opening Day roster in 2019.

He just wasn't good. The power and hard-hitting ability never translated to the big leagues. And his defense...let's not discuss that.

After spending the entire year in Triple-A in 2021, the Tigers moved on from him that offseason. He spent last year with the Red Sox Triple-A affiliate and is currently a free agent.

RHP Franklin Perez

You forgot he was still in the organization, didn't you? Well, we don't blame you for that. The centerpiece of the Justin Verlander trade is now 25 years old and is currently in Rookie ball.

It's quite simple. He just hasn't been able to stay healthy. It's mostly been shoulder issues for him.

It got so bad that the Tigers just decided to place him on waivers in 2021. He made it through because team didn't want to deal with his medicals and has been in the lower levels of the organization ever since.

We've seen him pitch in spring training on occasion, and he's looked good. The stuff was there. He just couldn't stay on the field.

It's just an unfortunate situation all around. Perez had the talent and ability, but as they old saying goes, the best ability is availability.