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BALTIMORE — Colt Keith is officially a starting third baseman in the big leagues.
The 23-year-old took the field at the hot corner for the Detroit Tigers for the first time in his MLB career on Wednesday, June 11, against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards — exactly six days after his first taste of third base with one inning as a defensive replacement. He started taking practice reps at third base less than two weeks ago.
“I know I can do it,” Keith said.
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Playing Keith at third base allows the Tigers to start Spencer Torkelson at first base, Gleyber Torres at second base and Kerry Carpenter at designated hitter. Without Keith at third base, one of the aforementioned four players would be forced to sit, or the injury-prone Carpenter — currently managing a right hamstring issue — would have to play right field. Additionally, putting Keith at third base and Carpenter at designated hitter opens the door for Wenceel Pérez (or Matt Vierling, when he returns from injury) to start in right field.
Third base is Keith’s third position at the MLB level.
He already plays second base and first base.
“I think it’ll help me down the road with the Tigers,” Keith said before Wednesday’s game, “and it’ll help me if it’s on a different team. Having multiple positions can help me at any point in my career. Adding more positions obviously will help me get in the lineup.”
Time will tell if Keith is the Tigers’ long-term answer at third base. The Tigers haven’t featured a primary third baseman since Jeimer Candelario for most of the games from 2018-22.
“I don’t know,” manager A.J. Hinch said, just two hours before Keith’s first start in Wednesday’s game. “I think he can do it on the front end. Just because he hasn’t done it in the big leagues yet doesn’t mean he can’t do it. Getting him more comfortable in the speed of the game and the different nuances with playing third on occasion, we’re going to try it out.”
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Keith has experience at third base.
The Tigers put Keith at third base after selecting him out of high school in the fifth round of the 2020 MLB Draft. At that position, he made 41 starts in 2021, 27 starts in 2022 and 61 starts in 2023 — all at various levels in the minor leagues.
Before Wednesday, Keith hadn’t started at third base since Aug. 31, 2023, in Triple-A Toledo.
It has been 650 days since then.
“I think it’ll just start with one play, just catching that first one and throwing across the diamond,” said Keith, who fielded his first grounder successfully for the final out in the fourth inning Wednesday, helping strand Baltimore runners on the corners. “It’s nothing different than second or first. You just got to catch the ball and make the play.”
One reason why Keith stopped playing third base was because of a right shoulder injury June 9, 2022, in High-A West Michigan. The injury occurred on the bases, when he dove back into first base on a pickoff attempt. He was diagnosed with a labrum injury and missed four months, though he avoided surgery.
He also tweaked that same shoulder during the 2023 and 2024 seasons, both while diving for a ball on defense, but he avoided the injured list in those situations.
Keith believes his shoulder is healthy enough to play third base after years of maintenance. His arm strength ranks in the 15th percentile among MLB players in 2025.
“Ever since the injury, I’ve been doing shoulder programs and things with our trainers,” Keith said, “almost after every game since that day. I’ve been making throws, and it’s been getting stronger and stronger over time.”
The Tigers desperately need improved production from the third-base position, as Tigers third basemen — Zach McKinstry, Andy Ibáñez, Jace Jung, Javier Baez — entered Wednesday’s game ranking 29th in MLB with a .580 OPS.
Keith has a .712 OPS.
He’s also hitting .240 with four home runs, 24 walks and 43 strikeouts in 59 games.
“Some of it is lineup configurations,” Hinch said. “If we want Tork and Gleyber and Colt and Carp and Wenceel and Parker and Riley, when you look at the defensive configuration, it’s important for Colt to do this. There’s a lot that goes into it — obviously, wanting the best offense combined with a good defense.”
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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