Tigers' latest spring roster cuts have Kevin McGonigle sweepstakes alive and well

The Tigers have slowly whittled away at what was initially a 67-man spring training. Four rounds of roster cuts jettisoned players that fans have never heard of and players who we thought might've had a real shot at the Opening Day roster alike.

The last one cut the major league camp roster down to 55 and sent top prospects Jake Miller and Josue Briceño (after he underwent a wrist surgery), among others, to Triple-A or minor league camp.

The latest, per Evan Petzold, will have yet more top prospects packing up their lockers. Max Clark, Hao-Yu Lee, Eduardo Valencia, and Thayron Liranzo were all either reassigned to minor league camp or optioned to their respective minor league levels. The Tigers' major league camp roster stands at 51.

And No. 1 prospect Kevin McGonigle is still standing.

Notably, McGonigle's fellow Arizona Fall League star Max Anderson has also survived through five rounds. He hasn't been batting as well as McGonigle — not even close — but his Triple-A experience could give him an edge over McGonigle. For now.

Max Clark among Tigers' latest round of spring training roster cuts; Kevin McGonigle survives

McGonigle is batting .353 with a 1.064 OPS through nine games. He was already doing very well before the Tigers traveled to the Dominican Republic for a few exhibition games against the World Baseball Classic's Team DR and Team Panama, but he announced himself on the international stage with a leadoff, first-pitch homer off of DR starter Luis Severino.

His defense has leant a lot of reassurance, too. Questions about McGonigle's level of preparedness as a big league shortstop were rife going into spring training, but he's been making smart decisions at short and making routine plays without issue.

Clark, on the other hand, was not hitting well, and he wasn't doing exceptionally well on defense either. Through nine games, he hit .111 with a .269 OPS, and he went viral for a tough day on defense against the Braves, which ignited a rather unnecessary round of discourse on Twitter.

But Clark was never expected to make the Opening Day roster. McGonigle, though the Tigers have waffled on it since the end of the 2025 season, very well could.

There are less than three weeks to go before Opening Day. McGonigle just needs to keep doing what he's been doing; the Tigers may have no choice but to promote him come Opening Day.