Dillon Dingler can cement future behind plate for Tigers after Carson Kelly trade

When the Tigers traded Carson Kelly to the Rangers on Sunday night, it wasn't exactly a surprise. Although Kelly had a lot less trade hype surrounding him than the two Tigers starters who still have yet to be moved but could be, he made a lot of sense as a trade candidate. He's enjoying a resurgent season and was in a walk year with Detroit after they exercised his club option for 2024.

The return for Kelly netted the Tigers two prospects: catcher Liam Hicks and righty pitcher Tyler Owens, who were both unranked in the Rangers' pipeline but have been performing well in Double-A this season.

While a trade of any of their starters could leave the Tigers rotation shortstaffed, that isn't a problem at backstop. Kelly's departure left a clear gap for No. 11 prospect Dillon Dingler to fill and make his MLB debut as co-catcher to Jake Rogers.

Just a few hours after the Kelly trade, Evan Petzold of The Detroit Free Press reported that Dingler would indeed be getting the call, and will presumably start during the Tigers' last game against the Guardians on Monday night.

Tigers to promote No. 11 prospect Dillon Dingler following Carson Kelly trade

Dingler has played 71 games in Triple-A this season and is batting .308 with a .938 OPS, 17 home runs, and 52 RBI, making him the Mud Hens' best hitter by far this year. He does have a concerning history of injury already, with "a thumb injury in '22, knee surgery that delayed his '23 season and elbow issues that led to arthroscopic surgery last offseason," all at the age of 25.

Still, his offensive production this year is undeniable. He has a nice 10% walk rate and has trimmed down his strikeout rate to 20.3%, though it is worth noting that all of his actual numbers exceed his projected numbers by a wide margin.

His last four games in Triple-A have been absurd: he went 9-15 with 23 total bases, four home runs and eight RBI, which led for some calls to promote him before the Kelly trade even occurred.

Trading Kelly was just a smart thing for the Tigers, who probably wouldn't have opted to re-sign him in the offseason, but this also allows Dingler to get a well-earned call up and try to follow in the footsteps of the Tigers' other quickly-improving prospects who made their debuts this season.