The Detroit Tigers have lots of depth in the infield. They received some great news regarding second baseman Gleyber Torres, as he accepted the qualifying offer to return next year. Players like Spencer Torkelson, Dillon Dingler, and Javier Baez all turned in solid seasons.
It wasn’t a total certainty that Torres would return, so it makes Detroit’s infield firmer heading into the offseason. The question becomes what happens with Colt Keith?
He began as the Opening Day first baseman and also slid over to third base. As the season progressed, Zach McKinstry held down the hot corner. Keith missed time due to injury and eventually was the odd man out.
However, president of baseball operations Scott Harris and manager AJ Hinch still have a ton of confidence in the 24-year-old. In an article written by Jason Beck of MLB.com.
“I know he played some third in the Minor Leagues, but he hadn’t played third in awhile,” Harris said. “We started throwing him at third midseason, and he performed really well, made some plays that I found very impressive…He just kind of got thrown into the fire and was able to really play the position, which is something that I find really impressive.”
Could a Move for Alex Bregman or Eugenio Suarez Impact Keith’s Role?
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The clear path for Keith to make an impact is at third base. However, the Tigers have been closely linked to players like Alex Bregman and Eugenio Suarez. There is a clear desire to improve an offense that stumbled into the playoffs a year ago.
In his second full season, Keith slashed .256/.333/.413 and hit 13 home runs with 45 RBIs. It was a slight downgrade across the board in comparison to his first season. Where he improved was in advanced analytics. Keith made steady improvements in exit velocity, hard-hit rate, and sweet spot percentage according to Baseball Savant. However, if Detroit acquires a powerhouse bat, there isn’t much room for Keith to start regularly.
Had Torres departed, second base would’ve been for Keith to take. Not to mention, fans are eager to see their number one prospect, Kevin McGonigle, take his leap to the big leagues. It’s still important that Keith continues to develop offensively. He’s too young to give up on yet. Ultimately, an injury will happen, and that is where the young infielder can step in.
There is already a massive log jam in this Detroit infield. If a bat is added, that issue could get worse, but it’s certainly a good problem that Hinch has on his hands. Regardless, it seems that Keith will be apart of their plans for the future and should still see a substantial role in 2026.
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