Detroit Tigers: Spencer Torkelson tapping into more power

Detroit Tigers seeing Spencer Torkelson tap into some power.

The Detroit Tigers have not had Spencer Torkelson break out as a prospect as well as they thought he would. There was a lot of talk about Torkelson being a generational talent and that he would go on to be an absolutely dominant hitter.

With all that talk surrounding Torkelson, there was undoubtedly some pressure on the Detroit Tigers slugger. He was drafted in 2020 during the COVID-19 era of baseball, where scouting was tough, evaluating was a tricky task, and even playing ball was challenging at times.

But the Tigers brought him in, hoping he would be "the guy" for them moving forward. It took him just one year with the organization to make his debut. After an entire season in the minors in 2021, Torkelson opened up the 2022 season with the Tigers organization, making the big league roster.

For the Tigers, it might have been a rush to bring him up, but he got his feet wet in the big leagues right off the bat. Things may not have gone as the Tigers were planning for him. His numbers have not taken off like a rocket ship, nor has he performed as well as some other rookies and former first-rounders.

But I'm not here to tear into Torkelson. He was rushed into the big leagues and has been forced to acclimate. But as the 2023 season roars on, it feels like he is starting to come into his own and get into a groove.

So far in 2023, Torkelson has hit .225/.304/.406 with 24 doubles, a triple, and 17 home runs over 426 at-bats. He's driven in 61 runs with 47 walks and 117 strikeouts on the season. While there's room to cut back on the strikeouts, it seems that Torkelson is finding his groove a bit.

He's been able to work on the barrel more and drive the ball in the air. When he does hit the ball for power, it's to the pull-side, and Torkelson has done an excellent job showing that ability to drive the ball in the air as of late.

For the Tigers, there must be some smiles amongst the front office bass about Torkelson's performance trending in the right direction. If Torkelson can tap into some more power moving forward, the Tigers will be able to see him continue to perform even better.

While he's underwhelmed in expectations thus far, looking at the big picture, there's time for him to be a late bloomer.