https://www.theoaklandpress.com/spo...cle_618d9a1c-3aca-11ea-8c1e-8bf714be5e8d.html
Time no longer on side of Tigers' first wave of positional player prospects.
Oakland Press
Third baseman/first baseman Jeimer Candelario hit .203 and had a .643 OPS (.757 was the MLB average). The Tigers sent him back to the minor leagues at one point. He will be 26 this season.
Outfielder Christin Stewart flashed genuine power potential in the minor leagues. He hit just 10 home runs in ?19 - a season during which more home runs were hit than any MLB season. He also batted just .233 and his OPS was a paltry .693.
Catchers Jake Rogers and Grayson Greiner presented virtually no offensive presence. Rogers hit .125 with a .481 OPS.
The Tigers gave a chance to Travis Demeritte. He didn?t make the most of it.
Harold Castro was billed as a pleasant surprise, yet his .291 batting average couldn?t be more misleading when it?s considered his OPS of .689 was well below the MLB average. How can somebody have 369 plate appearance like Castro and walk just nine times? It?s a lament familiar to that about third baseman Dawel Lugo, who walked just eight times in 269 plate appearances.
Quietly, former Rule 5 pick Victor Reyes showed promise. He had a .767 OPS. His 1.3 WAR was second on the club. It came after Reyes had a very good season for Triple-A Toledo (.815 OPS). But he is 25. Like the other above-mentioned players, he?s passed the prospect stage.
Niko Goodrum will get first shot at shortstop this season, and Jacoby Jones in center field. But they are 27.
It?s position players that need to develop. In that regard, it would benefit the Tigers if one or two or more of their prospects, who got MLB shots last season, but fell so flat, come through.
