Do the Tigers Need This Shortstop to Win it All?
Kevin McGonigle is the No. 2 prospect in baseball, but he might not make the opening day roster
After suffering a 10-year postseason drought, the Detroit Tigers will attempt to reach the playoffs for the third year in a row, suffering back to back ALDS losses in 2024 in 2025, but a new shortstop just might have what it takes to make a World Series push.
Kevin McGonigle, 21, committed to play baseball at Auburn University as a freshman in high school, but instead of playing for those Tigers, Detroit drafted him in the first round of the 2023 MLB draft, and signed him with a $2.85 million signing bonus.
In 2024, McGonigle hit his stride, batting .309 with five home runs, 22 stolen bases and 44 RBIs. That stat line was good enough to get him into the MLB futures game, the all-star game for the league’s best up-and-coming talent. McGonigle represented the Tigers along with prospects Max Clark and Josue Briceño.
Even though his 2024 season was cut short by an ankle injury, he came back from the injury as dominant as ever with an MVP level performance during the Arizona Fall League, where he batted .362 with a 1.210 OPS.
McGonigle has worked his way to No. 2 in MLB’s prospect rankings, only behind Konnor Griffin of the Pittsburgh Pirates. The MLB.com website, which uses a grading scale of 20-80, has him rated as a 70 level contact hitter, with a 60 level power hitter and a 55 grade on his running ability. Not too often you see those grades so close to each other in those attributes.
According to MLB.com’s scouting report, “McGonigle is arguably the best hitting prospect of the 2020s so far. He combines the right amount of plate discipline with aggression on pitches he can drive, and he pounds balls in the air and to all fields, with a specific aptitude for pulled shots.”
When your team has the player who had the second-most strikeouts in the league (outfielder Riley Greene), the words “right amount of plate discipline” is music to fan ears. The Tigers were also in the bottom third of the league in OBP, making McGonigle’s .410 OBP in the minors even more desirable.
As of today, the Tigers are still undecided on whether or not McGonigle will make the opening day roster, and they’re right to have reservations. First baseman Spencer Torkelson, who made his debut in 2023, didn’t even get his first career hit within his first few games.
So don’t call him up right away. It’s a 162-game season. Get him warmed up in Toledo, and have him ready come June 1 to beat Cleveland and Minnesota out for the division, so the Tigers can finally make it past the ALDS this year.
