DETROIT – The Detroit Tigers gave Spencer Torkelson every chance to break out of his season-long slump, but they were ultimately forced to demote him to the minor leagues.
Torkelson, 24, has been the poster child of Detroit’s offensive struggles so far this season, batting just .201 with a .597 OPS, four homers, and 56 strikeouts in 54 games.
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The Tigers were counting on Torkelson to grow into a legitimate power threat at the heart of the lineup, especially after he got hot in the second half of 2023 and finished with 31 homers.
But the former No. 1 overall draft pick hasn’t been able to find his stroke. It took until May 12 for him to hit his first homer of the season, and even since that date, he’s batting just .152 with twice as many strikeouts (20) as hits (10).
All of the underlying numbers support Torkelson’s struggles. He’s rocking an expected batting average of .192, and his hard-hit metrics are well below league average.
He’s striking out too often, not walking enough, and hitting way too many weak fly balls.
For all intents and purposes, Torkelson’s swing looks broken, and the Tigers are desperately hoping a reset in Toledo can help him come around.
In the meantime, the Tigers will likely deploy a first baseman by committee. Third baseman Gio Urshela played at the opposite corner a couple of times in Boston, and Mark Canha has also spent some time there.
Rookie outfielder Justyn-Henry Malloy is taking Torkelson’s spot on the roster in hopes that his combination of power and on-base skills can translate to the MLB level.
Malloy is a bad defender, but his bat has looked MLB ready for awhile. With Kerry Carpenter on the injured list, Malloy is probably going to get an extended opportunity.