The Tigers went exclusively the college route this year, loading up on bats early with five in their first six picks before transitioning to mostly pitching for the latter portion of day two and day three. Aside from that, there are no clear trends here, but I do really like that group of hitters they were able to put together early in the draft. Jace Jung has a very good chance to be the best hitter in the entire draft, while Peyton Graham has some of the most upside of any college player outside the first round.
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1-12: 2B Jace Jung, Texas Tech. My rank: #9.
Slot value: $4.59 million. Signing bonus: $4.59 million.
The Tigers started off their 2022 draft class with a bang, picking up the man that has been perhaps college baseball's best all-around hitter the past couple of seasons. The younger brother of Rangers prospect and former top ten pick Josh Jung, Jace is a career .328/.468/.647 hitter at Texas Tech and finished 2022 with a .335/.481/.612 line, 14 home runs, and a 42/59 strikeout to walk ratio over 61 games. Talked about throughout the top ten picks for much of the past two seasons, he got a little banged up while starting every single game for the Red Raiders and slumped a bit to close out the season, which may be why he was still available at twelve. The San Antonio native has a unique setup at the plate, holding his hands high behind his ear with the bat head cocked back towards the press box behind home plate, but personally I like it a lot because it really shortens the path his barrel needs to travel to reach the ball. He's already right there in the hitting position and wastes very little movement getting going. He stands out for an extremely patient approach, helping him walk in fully 20% of his plate appearances this spring as pitchers barraged him with offspeed stuff while he happily took first base time and time again. When you do give him something to hit, he won't miss it, with an easy plus hit tool that helps him make consistent hard contact to all fields. Jung has plenty of pop, too, producing huge exit velocities with great frequency, and that power also plays to all fields. Together, that's a hitter that could blast 25-30+ home runs a year with very high on-base percentages, fitting right into the upper third of the order. It's all about the bat here, though he should be able to stick in the dirt in some capacity. Drafted as a second baseman, he has enough range to be serviceable there, but he isn't the explosive athlete that can take away hits from the hole. He could also see some time at third base, where his range is a better fit, though he lacks the cannon arm of his older brother. Still, expect Jung to hit his way through the minors very quickly. He's already at High A West Michigan, where he's slashing .226/.314/.290 with seven strikeouts to four walks over eight games.
2-51: SS Peyton Graham, Oklahoma. My rank: #31.
Slot value: $1.51 million. Signing bonus: $1.8 million ($289,400 above slot value).
The Tigers got another Big 12 bat in the second round, but Peyton Graham is a very, very different player than Jace Jung. He has been a priority follow for area scouts throughout his time at Oklahoma, then after a so-so start to the 2022 season, he really warmed up with the weather to finish at .335/.417/.640 with 20 home runs, 34 stolen bases, and a 69/28 strikeout to walk ratio over 67 games. Graham is an ultra projectable athlete that combines abundant physical gifts with on-field performance and rapidly improving feel for the game. Built like a string bean at 6'3", he already has plenty of lean strength packed into that lanky frame and should only continue to get stronger. He already shows plus power that plays to all fields, showing the ability to get his arms extended and really drive the ball with force all over the zone. He makes plenty of contact right now, and it's usually very hard contact, though he is an aggressive hitter that has a tendency to chase and he walked in just 8.6% of his plate appearances this spring. As Graham moves up through the minors, pitchers will be more and more keen to take advantage of his approach and that will need to be a major point of emphasis going forward. The North Texas native did look better in that regard as the season wore on, but he's still too much of a free swinger. Graham is plenty athletic enough to play shortstop, where he shows both the range and arm strength to be a weapon out there, though the game can speed up on him a little bit and his feel for the position is just a tick behind. Just like with hitting, the Tigers will want to get him plenty of reps out there and help him make the routine play more consistently. I don't think it will come to this, but if he does move off the dirt, I think his plus speed could make him an asset in center field. Graham has serious All Star upside if he can tighten up his plate discipline, and I did see a couple of Trea Turner comps thrown out there (though Graham has more power and less plate discipline at this stage of his career). Regardless, this will be a lot of fun to track, and he is slashing .240/.406/.320 with nine strikeouts to six walks through seven games at Low A Lakeland, already showing a more patient approach in a small sample.
4-117: RHP Troy Melton, San Diego State. My rank: #147.
Slot value: $517,900. Signing bonus: $517,900.
Troy Melton was an interesting day two candidate for the 2021 draft, but an up and down season that saw him finish with a 6.14 ERA, in addition to his youth relative to the class, led him to return to San Diego State for 2022. With a 2.07 ERA and a 67/15 strikeout to walk ratio over 65.1 innings, the results were much better this time around, and Melton still doesn't turn 22 until December so he's age appropriate for this draft. He sits in the low to mid 90's with a fastball that has gotten up to 97, getting good extension as well that brings his release height down and helps the ball jump on hitters a little extra. His slider is an average pitch and could use to add some power, while his changeup is a third pitch that's a bit behind the others. Last year, he got hit hard when he left balls over the plate, with long arm action that made it easy for hitters to pick pitches up out of his hand. A shorter arm stroke in 2022 helps him hide the ball better, and his ERA dropped more than four runs. The 6'4" righty is a great athlete that does not throw with too much effort, filling up the zone well with at least average command. Given his athleticism and ability to make adjustments, there is a lot for the Tigers to play with here as they work to sharpen up his offspeed stuff, so there is a chance he develops into a mid rotation starter. For now, he looks more like a #4 or #5 given his lack of a true out pitch. The Southern California native could move relatively quickly.
5-147: 3B Luke Gold, Boston College. My rank: #100.
Slot value: $386,900. Signing bonus: $386,900.
This is a nice pickup in the fifth round for the Tigers, who are getting a very good hitter even if he's not as explosive as a guy like Jace Jung or Peyton Graham. Luke Gold showed very well in the Cape Cod League last summer (.267/.363/.523), then put together a quietly solid 2022 campaign by slashing .308/.401/.557 with nine home runs and a 28/24 strikeout to walk ratio over 53 games in a very strong ACC. Every draft, I find a few guys that are best described as "just a pro hitter," and Gold fits that. He grinds out at bats and makes a ton of contact from the right side, showing very little swing and miss while consistently spraying hard line drives to all fields. All that contact keeps his walk rates down, but you don't have to worry about him chasing and helping pitchers out. There is some power from a simple, quick, right handed swing, and he tapped it with wood bats on the Cape where he homered six times in 27 games. In all, it's a very nice offensive profile that could produce around 15 home runs a year with high batting averages and steady, consistent performance. He will have to hit, because he's more ballplayer than athlete and projects as a fringy defender no matter where you put him. The Albany-area native played mostly second base at Boston College, where his fringy speed limited his range, and it looks like the Tigers drafted him as a third baseman to see if he has just enough arm strength to make it work. If Gold slows down at all with age, he could be pushed to first base in the long run, where he may not have enough power to play every day (especially with Spencer Torkelson around). You're never going to get guaranteed starters for slot value in the fifth round anyways, so I still really like the floor here and think Gold will contribute sooner rather than later. He's already been deployed at Low A Lakeland, where he has two hits in eleven at bats through four games with an even three to three strikeout to walk ratio.
6-177: SS Danny Serretti, North Carolina. My rank: unranked.
Slot value: $293,900. Signing bonus: $293,900.
Danny Serretti, like Troy Melton, was a well-known name that had a chance to go on day two of the draft, in 2021, but he opted to head back to school and try his luck again. He did manage to put up significantly better numbers this spring, with a .365/.437/.567 slash line, ten home runs, and a 38/32 strikeout to walk ratio over 64 games landing him in the sixth round. A switch hitter, he has been much more disciplined this spring and really cut down on his swing and miss, helping him do damage with a lot of hard contact. There is some sneaky power to the pull side in his 6'1" frame, and he does drive balls into the gaps for extra base hits regularly. It's not a flashy offensive profile, but one that can handle pro pitching and make enough impact to keep moving up. He's been the UNC shortstop for a few years now, with smooth actions in the dirt and perhaps just enough arm to stick there. The New Jersey native's athleticism helps him on both sides of the ball, as he moves really well in the box, on the basepaths, and at shortstop. It's a pretty coachable profile that has a very good shot to wind up a utility infielder down the line. He's off to a red hot start for Low A Lakeland, where he's slashing .455/.647/.818 with a home run and just one strikeout to six walks through four games.
7-207: OF Seth Stephenson, Tennessee. My rank: unranked.
Slot value: $229,800. Signing bonus: $300,000 ($71,200 above slot value).
Seth Stephenson makes it two switch hitters in a row for the Tigers, and he went a little above slot to grab himself a nice $300,000 bonus in the seventh round. Stephenson spent two years at Temple JC in Texas before transferring to Tennessee, where he put up a great season and hit .339/.408/.508 with four home runs, 25 stolen bases, and a 41/15 strikeout to walk ratio over 59 games. He stands out most for his speed, with plus-plus wheels that help him fly around the bases and the outfield. Listed at a skinny 5'9", there is very little power in the tank and he hit just four home runs this year despite playing at a hitter-friendly home park, but he does make a ton of line drive contact and lets his speed do the rest. He's a relatively aggressive hitter that wants to make things happen quickly, so he doesn't walk much and his strikeout rate is a bit elevated as well. He's played some infield in college but will likely stick with the outfield in pro ball, where his speed makes him an asset in all three positions. To reach his ceiling as a speedy fourth outfielder, the Austin-area native will need to manage the strike zone a bit better so that he can cut down on the swing and miss, giving his speed more opportunity to go to work.
10-297: RHP Trevin Michael, Oklahoma. My rank: unranked.
Slot value: $153,000. Signing bonus: $50,000 ($103,000 below slot value).
If you want quick to the big leagues, it might not get much quicker than Trevin Michael, the oldest player in the entire draft at nearly 25 years old. After graduating from Oklahoma's Piedmont High School in 2016, he redshirted his freshman season, spent two years pitching for Northern Oklahoma JC, then two years at Lamar, then finally came to Oklahoma in 2022 as a sixth year senior. Serving as the Sooner closer, he was nothing short of dominant this spring with a 2.89 ERA and a 95/20 strikeout to walk ratio over 71.2 innings and really stepping up during the College World Series run. He sits in the mid 90's and regularly touches the upper 90's, with some hop that makes it jump on hitters. A rare four pitch college reliever, he adds three secondaries that will all be put to good use in pro ball. His short, hard slider has some sweep to it, while his more top to bottom curveball gives him more depth and his changeup fades nicely away from left handed hitters. An absolute bulldog on the mound, he attacks the strike zone relentlessly and that makes up for average command. The 6'2" righty did make a couple of starts for Oklahoma this spring and performed well in extended outings, but given his age, he'll likely be a pure reliever for the Tigers where they can rush him up to the big leagues as quickly as possible. Expect him in Detroit sometime in 2023, though for now he's starting off in the Florida Complex League and has struck out two of the four batters he's faced.
13-387: OF Dom Johnson, Kansas State. My rank: unranked.
Slot value: up to $125,000. Signing bonus: $180,000 ($55,000 against bonus pool).
Dom Johnson was on scouts' radars out of high school in 2020, but made it to campus at Oklahoma State and barely played in 2021. He transferred to Kansas State after the season and thrived in Manhattan, slashing .345/.419/.593 with twelve home runs and a 48/25 strikeout to walk ratio over 57 games. Working with a line drive swing, he makes a lot of hard contact with a quick stroke from the right side and likes to turn on balls when pitchers come in. That's where his power comes from, because at 5'9" he doesn't quite have the thump to put the ball over the fence the other way on a consistent basis. He's also a plus runner that has a chance to play center field if he can get a little more refined out there, giving him a very solid fourth outfielder projection. To reach that, he'll also need to get more refined at the plate, where he has a tendency to chase good breaking balls. I saw him play a couple games in person at Texas Tech, where Cubs fifth rounder Brandon Birdsell struck him out three times in a row on the same pitch – a good slider down and away. The Tigers are buying the athleticism and trajectory here, because even if he has a ways to go in his development, he's miles ahead of where he was a year ago.
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