Tigers Have Multiple Youngsters Debuting in Team’s Updated Prospect Rankings

The Detroit Tigers have one of the most highly rated minor league systems in baseball.

Coming into the 2025 campaign, they were ranked No. 3. A small drop will likely occur with top prospect, pitcher Jackson Jobe, and third baseman Jace Jung both graduating from prospect status this season.

That follows the graduations of shortstop Trey Sweeney, pitcher Brant Hurter and catcher Dillon Dingler.

Those are some excellent players who are no longer part of the prospect equation for the Tigers, but they still have plenty of high-end talent buoying the system.

Center fielder Max Clark is one of the most highly touted prospects in baseball. Second baseman Kevin McGonigle and shortstop Bryce Rainer are both inside the top 50 at most outlets.

Which Players Have Broken Into Tigers Top Prospect Rankings?

With so many graduations, Detroit is now seeing some new faces in their team’s prospect rankings, with the highest jump going to infielder Hao-Yu Lee.

The versatile infielder began his professional career with the Philadelphia Phillies, but was traded to the Tigers in 2023 in exchange for pitcher Michael Lorenzen.

After a strong 2024 campaign with Double-A Erie, he was promoted to Triple-A Toledo to start 2025 and has more than held his own.

He is now the No. 7-ranked prospect in the Detroit system after being unranked previously by Kiley McDaniel of ESPN. Lee owns a .268/.361/.411 slash line thus far in Triple-A.

Another new face on the prospect rankings is right fielder Cris Rodriguez, a top-ranked international prospect in the 2025 class who took over the No. 9 spot.

Signed for a franchise-record $3,197,500 bonus out of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, he is the first top-five prospect on the international amateur market to ever be signed by the Tigers.

A raw prospect at 17 years old, Rodriguez possesses immense power potential, already measuring out at 6-foot-3 and 203 pounds. But, he is a long way from contributing in the Big Leagues with an ETA of 2030.

Last but not least is pitcher Dylan Smith.

He is No. 10 in McDaniel’s updated rankings. A third-round pick out of the University of Alabama in 2021, Smith has seen an incredible jump in production in 2025 compared to his previous results.

His dominance at Double-A earned him a promotion to Triple-A. If he keeps up this level of performance, Smith could be an option for the Major League team if a need arises in the bullpen.