The Detroit Tigers have re-assigned former top prospect Keston Hiura to minor league camp. They made the announcement on social media.
The Tigers have announced the following roster moves:
*Reassigned RHP Trey Wingenter, LHP Andrew Vasquez, C Anthony Bemboom, INF Keston Hiura and OF’s Bligh Madris and Ryan Vilade to Minor League camp.
*The Tigers have 34 players remaining in Major League camp.
It's a disappointing development for Hiura, who was hoping to make the roster as a reserve infielder. It remains to be seen what will happen for him now, if he'll choose to stay in the Tigers minor league system or if he'll have a chance to latch on somewhere else.
He hit .323 in Grapefruit League action this spring with two home runs and nine RBI.
Hiura was let go by the Brewers at the outset of the offseason, which was a disappointing end to his tenure in the organization. He was at one point ranked the No. 20 overall prospect in baseball (2019) by MLB.com.
He appeared in games each year for the Brewers from 2019-2022 before being outrighted off the 40-man roster for 2023.
Unfortunately, he regressed nearly every year of his big league tenure. He came up in 2019, playing in 84 games and popping 19 home runs. In the COVID 2020 season, he hit 13 home runs in 59 games. Then in 2021, his offense cratered: He hit four home runs in 61 games and struggled to a .168 batting average. In 2022, he played in 80 games and hit 14 homers, but still batted just .226.
The strikeout has always been a major problem for Hiura. He led baseball in strikeouts during the COVID year, fanning 85 times in just the 60-game season.
He had a very productive year in the minors last year, playing in 88 total minor league games. He batted .311 with 23 homers and 79 RBI. He still struck out 91 times in 88 games but he did post a .397 on-base percentage, so maybe he has turned the corner for his next chance.
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