Top 5 Prospects for 2015: Detroit Tigers

This 30-part series will look at the projected Top 5 freshman contributors for each big league club for the year ahead. The rankings take into consideration a mixture of ceiling, readiness and potential playing time allocation, which is to say some players with lower ceilings may be ranked ahead of others with higher ceilings because they project to have a greater impact in the coming season.

In a Nutshell: The Tigers don’t feature many high-ceiling prospects on the cusp of big league action but they have some young players that could provide some decent short-term production.

The Top 5 Freshman for 2015

1. Buck Farmer, RHP: Farmer made four MLB appearances in 2014, which is pretty impressive considering he opened the year in Low-A ball. The 2013 fifth round pick isn’t flashy but he has the strong frame needed to develop into a back-end, innings-eating hurler. After spending time at four different levels in 2014, he should open the year in Triple-A. Two new rotation candidates, Shane Greene and Alfredo Simon, come with some question marks so it may not be too long into the season before Farmer gets another shot.

2. James McCann, C: A second round pick from 2010, McCann is slightly behind current big league back-up catcher Bryan Holaday, a 2010 sixth rounder, on the depth chart. However, starter Alex Avila is coming off of a disappointing 2014 campaign and has significant injury concerns so the rookie catcher could see The Show sooner rather than later. The 24-year-old catcher will likely open up the ’15 season back at Triple-A for a second go-around despite a solid offensive showing last year with a line of .295/.343/.427. McCann has enough potential to eventually take over the everyday catching gig for Detroit.

3. Hernan Perez, 2B: Ian Kinsler has a strangle hold on the second base job in Detroit but the club is significantly light on middle infield depth outside of the light-hitting Andrew Romine and Perez. The soon-to-be-24-year-old Venezuelan showed solid gap power at the Triple-A level in 2014. He also stole more than 20 bases for the four straight year, and could receive some playing time simply from his ability to give the offence a different look. He doesn’t profile well as everyday player at shortstop or third base but he has the ability to handle both roles on a short-term basis.

4. Steven Moya, OF: Moya had a monster 2014 season in terms of power. He slugged 35 home runs and added another 33 doubles in 133 Double-A games. Unfortunately, he also produced a BB-K rate of 23-161 and his .295 career on-base average (six seasons) leaves a lot to be desired. Big league hurlers will likely pick Moya’s approach apart so he’s going to need more seasoning before he has a significant impact in the Majors.

5. Tyler Collins, OF: Collins doesn’t have the ceiling or the tools that Moya possesses but he’s a little more big league ready. He’s probably not going to hit for a high average and he strikes out too much but he has some pop, can steal the odd base and grinds out at-bats. Right-fielder J.D. Martinez is coming off a breakout 2014 campaign but doesn’t have much of a proven track record so Collins could receive a look if the incumbent struggles — or if any of the other regulars hit the disabled list.