Detroit Tigers DVOA, Stats, & MLB Rankings

Detroit Tigers second/third baseman Colt Keith has put forth a .250 batting average with no home runs, five RBI, and no stolen bases in 24 Grapefruit League at-bats this spring. While it is unclear if the 22-year-old will start the season with the Tigers, he signed a six-year, $28.64 million contract extension this off-season. Keith had an excellent 2023 season between Double-A Erie and Triple-A Toledo, hitting a combined 27 HR with 101 RBI. He is a name to know in dynasty leagues, but Keith will likely play a fantasy role in re-draft leagues as well, perhaps as early as Opening Day.

Detroit Tigers outfielder Parker Meadows went 0-for-3 on Monday in a 5-3 Grapefruit League win over the Houston Astros. After starting the spring season 7-for-20 (.350), he's now 0-for-6 in his last two games and 7-for-26 overall (.269). Despite this little rough patch, included in his seven hits are two doubles and two home runs. Right now per Roster Resource, the 24-year-old is projected as the Tigers' leadoff hitter, which would be a boon to his potential fantasy stats, however, he was batting ninth in the order on Monday which would depress his value, so that's something worth keeping an eye on. He's currently going off draft boards late, around pick 289 per his NFBC ADP, but RotoBaller ranks him slightly higher at 269.

Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch stated that reliever Jason Foley, who was scheduled to pitch in Sunday's Grapefruit League matchup with the Mets, did not pitch due to "mid-camp pitching fatigue." At least it doesn't sound serious, but on the other hand, fatigue this early in the season doesn't seem to bode well for the rest of the year. Nevertheless, it doesn't sound like Foley is in danger of missing any regular season action at this point. Foley is currently used as a setup reliever, but closer Alex Lange's struggles both last year and this spring could make Foley a candidate to take over as closer if Lange relinquishes the job. Foley pitched well last season for the Tigers with a 2.61 ERA and 1.16 WHIP in 69 IP, even collecting seven saves along the way.

Detroit Tigers outfielder Kerry Carpenter is scheduled to play the outfield for the first time this spring on Saturday versus the Pittsburgh Pirates. The 26-year-old has been slowed by a hamstring strain this spring but has appeared in two games at designated hitter, going 1-for-6 with a pair of strikeouts in that time. Carpenter enjoyed a big season in his first full tour through the majors, hitting .278 with 20 home runs and an .811 OPS across 118 games. He also appeared in 31 games in the 2022 season as he has combined for a .273 average with 26 homers and an .808 OPS through the first 149 games of his big-league career. He projects for a .257 average with 23 homers and six stolen bases by ATC in the 2024 season but he will exceed those projections if he can take another step forward in his second full big-league campaign.

Detroit Tigers starting pitcher Kenta Maeda allowed two runs, four hits, and two walks over three innings of work against the Toronto Blue Jays on Thursday. He also struck out one batter. After surrendering zero earned runs in his 2024 Spring Training debut last week, Maeda was roughed up this time around. With that said, we can't put too much stock into one fluky spring outing. Maeda had an impressive 3.77 xERA, 10.09 K/9, and 2.42 BB/9 last year, and he figures to operate as the Tigers' No. 3 starter throughout his first campaign in Detroit. He's an intriguing value option in fantasy baseball leagues.