Detroit Tigers: 3 players playing their way off the roster in spring training

INF Ryan Kreidler

Let me first say that I've never been that bullish on Kreidler. Even when he was hitting well in the minors in 2021, I took one look at this strikeout numbers and thought he wouldn't ever be more than a AAAA player. Early returns during a cup of coffee in the big leagues in 2022 suggest I was correct. But that was a very small sample, to be fair. It's also possible he was still battling a hand injury he suffered early last season. But so far in spring training, it's been more of the same.

Kreidler is really slick in the field. He's really smooth at shortstop, which does give him an advantage. None of his competiton for a roster spot has that ability, maybe with the exception of Zack Short. But he still just not a good hitter.

On the surface, his spring training numbers are solid. He's got an .829 OPS and .519 slugging percentage. But if you've watched any of his ABs, he's been pretty lucky. He's got a couple bloop doubles and some dribblers that have gotten through the infield. A lot of weak contact.

Again, I'm a bit biased because I've never been a believer in him, but I just don't see how he can make the roster when Zack Short and Andre Lipcius have been hitting as well as they have. Maybe I end up being wrong, which I certainly wouldn't be upset about, but I needless to say, I have my doubts.