Here are the Tigers' 2026 Top 30 prospects
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LAKELAND, Fla. -- The next wave of young Tigers talent is about to knock on Detroit's doorstep. It's not just top prospect Kevin McGonigle, who continues to make a case for Detroit's Opening Day roster as a starting stortstop. It's not just Max Clark, who could make a push to roam the vast prairie of Comerica Park's outfield later this summer.
It's Max Anderson and Hao-Yu Lee, both of whom are likely to not only make their Major League debut this season but push to fill a need for a righty-hitting infielder to play third base against lefties and provide pinch-hit at-bats. It's slugging catcher/first basemen Eduardo Valencia and Josue Briceño, whose bats could push manager A.J. Hinch to carry three catchers at times on the 26-man roster.
Like Tarik Skubal, Casey Mize, Matt Manning and Jake Rogers five or six years ago, like Spencer Torkelson, Riley Greene and Kerry Carpenter four years ago, like Jackson Jobe and Dillon Dingler two years ago, the Tigers farm system continues to produce in groups. Keep that in mind as you peruse the latest Tigers Top 30 Prospect list and consider how the various timetables fit.
This is what the Tigers had in mind when they rebuilt their player development and amateur scouting groups over the past several years. This is why they see this season as part of a window of contention, rather than one last shot with Tarik Skubal on the verge of potential free agency next winter.
"I would reject the notion that we are just pushing chips in," president of baseball operations Scott Harris said at the start of camp, when the Tigers announced the Framber Valdez and Justin Verlander signings. "We try to win every year. I think what these moves say is that this organization is on a great trajectory. We've gotten better every single year.
"There's some young impact players that are coming. They're coming fast, and we're going to trust them. Part of our identity is giving opportunity to young hitters and continuing to build around them, and we trust that it's going to continue to improve."
Here's a look at the Tigers top prospects:
1. Kevin McGonigle, SS (MLB No. 2)
2. Max Clark, OF (MLB No. 10)
3. Bryce Rainer, SS (MLB No. 35)
4. Josue Briceño, C/1B (MLB No. 40)
5. Max Anderson, 2B/3B
Complete Top 30 list »
Biggest jump/fall
Here are the players whose ranks changed the most from the 2025 preseason list to the 2026 preseason list:
Jump: Max Anderson, 2B/3B (2025: 25 | 2026: 5)
A year ago around this time, Anderson looked like a fringe prospect from the same Draft that brought Clark and McGonigle to the Tigers. Then he hit .296/.350/.478 with 31 doubles, 19 home runs and 88 RBIs between Double-A Erie and Triple-A Toledo while bouncing between second and third base. Now his MLB debut looks more a question of when than if, and the faith that the Tigers placed in the bat looks justified.
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Fall: Ethan Schiefelbein, LHP (2025: 17 | 2026: NR)
Schiefelbein's fall has resulted from injury; the 2024 second-round Draft pick has totaled nine professional innings over three games, all in the Rookie-level Florida Complex League. He's still a teenager until his 20th birthday on April 11, so there's plenty of time to get his career going, starting this summer, and to climb the rankings again. But it's difficult to rank a pitcher who has barely pitched as a professional in two years since being drafted, especially one whose ranking has relied in part on physical projection.
Best tools
Players are graded on a 20-80 scouting scale for future tools -- 20-30 is well below average, 40 is below average, 50 is average, 60 is plus and 70-80 is well above average. Players in parentheses have the same grade.
Hit: 70 -- Kevin McGonigle
Power: 65 -- Cris Rodriguez
Run: 70 -- Max Clark
Arm: 70 -- Bryce Rainer
Field: 60 -- Max Clark (John Peck)
Fastball: 60 -- Dylan Smith
Curveball: 60 -- Malachi Witherspoon (Lucas Elissalt)
Slider: 60 -- Witherspoon (Kelvis Salcedo, Dylan Smith)
Changeup: 60 -- Grayson Grinsell
Control: 55 -- Jake Miller (Grayson Grinsell)
How they were built
Draft: 23 | International: 5 | Trade: 2
Breakdown by ETA
2026: 9 | 2027: 7 | 2028: 11 | 2029: 2 | 2030: 1
Breakdown by position
C: 4 | 2B: 1 | 3B: 2 | SS: 7 | OF: 4 | RHP: 7 | LHP: 5