
The biggest question facing every WNBA team in training camp
WNBA training camps open with key questions for each team.
Max Clark, the Detroit Tigers' top prospect, has made a strong start in Triple-A, showcasing impressive hitting and fielding skills. With 8 doubles, 6 stolen bases, and a high exit velocity, he is on track for a potential major league debut later this summer.
The gregarious 21-year-old center fielder has been the most impressive Tigers prospect early on this season, and thereās really no contest. With Kevin McGonigle about to graduate from prospect eligibility, Clark will shortly become the Tigers top prospect, and heāll be shooting up to the top of national lists on his current trajectory. Clark spent a ton of his offseason training preparing himself to see a lot more breaking stuff, and was taking lots of extra reps from machines throwing curveballs and sliders. That work, along with continued strength gains for the hard-working gym rat, has already born fruit at the Triple-A level. Clark has been a force at the plate for the Mud Hens, and is playing really well in center field, racking up a whopping five assists to go with a few nice diving plays as well. The great difficulty of the jumps from High-A to Double-A, and even more when moving up to face plenty of major league veterans at the Triple-A level, is the increasing quality of breaking and offspeed stuff thrown by pitchers much more capable of executing complicated sequences tailored to each opposing hitter. The lower minors tend to winnow out hitters with minimal zone recognition and/or trouble hitting better velocity. Itās not unusual at each successive level to see strikeout rates pop for hitters early on, with the better prospects adapting over the course of a season and getting back to their prior rates of contact and damage. But at the Triple-A level, itās more about the ability to stay on time for good fastballs, while managing to adapt to more sophisticated plans of attack and execution from opposing pitchers. So far, Clark has had little trouble with any of it. 13 games into his season, Clark has struck out just five times, while drawing 10 walks, one intentional. He has eight doubles, one triple, and six stolen bases. Job one was to hang in there against better pitching and steadily start adapting in the first half of the season with an eye toward a major league debut later this summer. Heās already more than holding his own in all these respects, and heās faced some pretty good pitching, including numerous teams most advanced pitching prospects, already. At the same time, heās hit several balls harder than anything weāve ever seen tracked in his exit velocities. Heās topped 111 mph off the bat, and has several balls over 110 mph. The Tigers will want him to see a good variety of pitching and show that he can adapt as teams continue to pitch him more carefully in the leadoff spot for the Hens most nights, so a call-up isnāt imminent, but heās certainly ahead of my expectations that heād be ready by midsummer. The two things left to look for is the pull side power to start showing up and for Clark to get a good dose of left-handed pitching and handle it well. At each successive level, Clark has hit well, but taken time to really start turning and crushing some balls to the pull field. Once we start seeing more of that, Clark will be right on the doorstep of his major league debut. Itās not that the Tigers need him to hit 20-25 home runs, as he has all the tools to impact games in many ways, but you take the home run power as a sign that heās really starting to dominate pitching down there and jump mistakes. When we see that, along with Clark facing enough good lefties to show heās balancing his splits reasonably well, heāll be ready for a call-up. Heās currently trending well ahead of pace, but you can probably expect some bumps in the road before he really starts tearing it up. Iām still thinking sometime around the All-Star break is a pretty good over/under target, but itās fair to suggest that if he keeps hitting like he has so far and the power shows up a little more, he can push things on a much quicker timeline. Heās already ahead of schedule even for a blue chip prospect, and heās several months younger than Kevin McGonigle.
Beyond Clark, the Tigers top two position player prospects at Toledo are infielders Hao-Yu Lee and Max Anderson. Unfortunately, late spring injuries sidelined them both quickly this spring. Lee is now back from his oblique injury, but the recently turned 23-year-old still only has a couple of games under his belt at this point. Andersonās injury doesnāt sound serious or long-term, but of course, the Tigers donāt comment on injuries in the minor leagues much unless they involve surgery. So, weāll just to wait and see when he can get back on the field. Lee is a little better defensively at second, while Anderson is more consistent. Neither is going to give you above average defense, but they can both hit. Probably they profile best as part-time players who do most of their damage against left-handed pitching. Anderson still needs to be more selective and swing at better pitches. Of the two, he has better contact ability. Lee is a little more disciplined, but can still be foiled by steady doses of good breaking balls. Neither has really been able to implement the changes in swing and approach they need to in order to fully access their power potential. Weāll see if either can break out this season, but even as they are they provide some decent depth at the Triple-A level for the Tigersā infield. Two other intriguing names are Trei Cruz and Gage Workman. Cruz can play center field, shortstop, and pretty much anything else. Workman can handle shortstop, but profiles best at third base where his strong arm plays well. Cruz walks, switch hits decently though better left-handed, and has the speed to steal bases, but in terms of power production heās not going to put too many balls in the seats. Workman has speed as well, but he also packs plus power. Unfortunately, Workman has always struck out too much against top competition, as his work with the Cubs and White Sox showed last summer before he ultimately returned to the Tigers. Still, heās only 26 years old, does a lot of things well, and is off to a good start. Ya never know.
Infielder John Peck and outfielder Brett Callahan are currently the featured attractions for the Double-A Erie SeaWolves. With top catching prospects Thayron Liranzo and Josue BriceƱo injured, the prospect star power with the SeaWolves is currently quite diminished, but Peck and Callahan have done their part to overcome that. Callahan is still getting whiffed on completely by national prospect sites, but Iāve been describing him as a potential Kerry Carpenter 2.0 for two seasons now. In truth, the only similarity is that theyāre left-handed hitting outfieders from modest college backgrounds who are primed to pull the baseball in the air and found a lot more pop in pro ball. At this point heās an easy 40+ FV. Callahan too is a bit of a free-swinger who is looking to do damage, but he draws his walks and knows the zone pretty well too. His swing is geared for natural loft to the pull field, and his plus power allows him to do plenty of damage. There are certainly some similarities to pre-breakout Carpenter. Callahan is still something of a longshot. Weāll have to see if he can trim down the swing and miss against good breaking and offspeed stuff, but his chances are augmented by a much better defensive profile than Carpenter. Callahan combines plus speed with a strong arm that is maybe a 70 FV tool. He has the speed to play center field, but his jumps say the better fit is in right field. Still, the combination of defensive ability with plus power and solid plate discipline makes him an intriguing player to watch. In just seven games, he already has a pair of homers for the SeaWolves, along with a respectable 21.9 percent K-rate against a 9.4 percent walk rate.
Brett Callahan flashes his plus plus arm again as he guns down a runner at 2nd from the warning track in left center pic.twitter.com/JvgwN9cr6c
ā Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) April 12, 2026 View Link Peck, like Callahan, is another inexpensive college draft pick as the Tigers continue to hunt for athletic college players without the big time pedigrees, saving bonus pool money in the process. A shortstop at Pepperdine, Peck has improved quite a bit defensively, and I underrated his work at shortstop last summer. In spring camp, he showed the skills of a more experienced defender capable of handling everyday work at the shortstop position. At the same time, he clearly put on some good muscle over the offseason, and that was reflected in his upgraded batspeed this spring. Thereās a lot to like here, but there are still concerns about how heāll do against better breaking and offspeed stuff in the upper minors. He held his own in a partial look at Erie last summer, but he whiffed a lot and didnāt do a whole lot of damage either. Heās a bit of a free swinger, but he knows the strike zone, and the improved batspeed should help him to handle the tougher mix of velocity and better secondary stuff heāll see with the SeaWolves this spring. There is also a clear path to a role as a talented, versatile defender who mashes left-handed pitching even if he doesnāt quite break out fully as a hitter. Unlike Callahan, Peck hasnāt done much early on, but we already saw what he could do against better pitching in spring camp, and the Tigers kept him until the end of the exhibition season rather thann reassigning him to minor league camp along the way. He clearly turned some heads, and his progress will be interesting to track this year.
Things are fine in West Michigan. They have some interesting talent of their own, there just hasnāt been anything especially positive or negative to note just yet. Other than right-hander Lucas Elissaltās improving fastball velocity, there hasnāt been anything too obvious to bring up so early into the season. Not so in Lakeland. Weāll start with the Tigers third ranked prospect, 20-year-old shortstop Bryce Rainer. The Tigers 2024 first rounder was off to a great start last spring when he tore up his shoulder diving back to first base and had to have season ending surgery. Rainer had already shown off an advanced eye for the strike zone for a prep pick, 70 grade raw power, and an 80 grade throwing arm to go with plus speed on the bases. The only glaring flaw was some weakness against breaking and offspeed stuff as he saw better secondary pitching than he faced in high school. Even now he only has 174 plate appearances in pro ball, so he really just needs to get reps in and start to adapt to getting less fastballs to crush. Thatās still the thing to watch for this spring, but for now, Rainer is just getting his feet wet after not playing for 10 months. Heās been extremely patient in the early going, seeing a ton of pitches, and getting himself into some bad counts despite his high walk rate. Most importantly, his arm looks good. I havenāt seen him need to fully air one out yet, but heās back to slinging darts across the diamond with ease, so it looks like all systems are go. Meanwhile, he dropped jaws the other day with the hardest hit baseball weāve seen from a Tigersā hitter at any level in the Statcast era. He turned around a 96.7 mph sinker at a whopping 116.2 mph, cranking a home run an estimated 477 feet to straightaway center field. Rainer clearly got stronger during his rehab work, but heās still lanky enough to think there could be more strength gains ahead. Once he gets enough reps and settles in, you can expect him to move to West Michigan by mid-season at the latest.
116.2 MPH | 477 FEET@tigers 2024 first-rounder Bryce Rainer sent this ball into orbit š@LkdFlyingTigers | @RoadtoDetroitpic.twitter.com/v4jjfvTRK5
ā MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) April 10, 2026 Another really intriguing home run was crushed by Zach MacDonald. Youāll notice this developing theme of fast, up the middle defenders with plus or better power and advanced plate dsicipline throughout the Tigersā system. Weāve never seen anything like this from the Tigersā farm. Like Peck and Callahan, the Tigers plucked MacDonald from a smaller school, Miami University, and only paid him a minimum bonus in 2024. MacDonald struck out a lot in his first look at Single-A ball last summer. Heās still striking out quite a bit in the early going, and that makes him a real longshot as a college hitter facing just the lowest level of full season ball. On the other hand, he has plus speed, plays a reasonably sound center field already, steals bases, and, as he also showed off last week, is stacked with more raw power than anyone but the Tigersā seemingly forecast on draft day. This 114.2 mph blast is harder hit than all but the three hardest hit balls Riley Greene has produced over the past two full seasons. That is outstanding raw power by anyoneās measure, but in a center fielder it stands out even more. MacDonald is already 22, and he has a long way to go in the pure hitting department to become a major prospect. Even so, the secondary tools are pretty jaw dropping and offer a lot of paths to some kind of major league role. If he happens to figure it out he could move quickly, but for now he needs to cut way down on the strikeouts and hit his way to West Michigan before anyone should get too excited. 114.2 MPH blast from Michigan native Zach MacDonald, who caps off a seven-run inning for the Flying Tigers. It is now 13-4. pic.twitter.com/RXGqvh5Ikt
ā Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) April 5, 2026 There are numerous other position players worth watching in Lakeland, even as we wait for the debuts of 2025 first rounder Jordan Yost, who is already lauded for his contact ability, discipline, defense, speed, and arm strength. Youāll recall many national scouts on draft day worrying over Yostās power, but after putting on 13 pounds of good muscle by his estimation, the prep shortstopās first televised at-bat came this spring, facing an upper level minor leaguer, with the bases loaded. And then this happened. Once again, the Tigers seem to be doing a brilliant job drafting athletic contact hitters who play shortstop or center field, and quickly helping them develop their batspeed. JORDAN YOST GRAND SLAM!!!
Max Clark has played 13 games, recording 8 doubles, 1 triple, 6 stolen bases, 10 walks, and 5 strikeouts.
Max Clark is projected to make his major league debut around the All-Star break if he continues his current performance.
Max Clark trained extensively in the offseason to improve his ability to hit breaking pitches, focusing on extra reps with curveballs and sliders.
Clark's ability to handle left-handed pitching and show pull-side power will be key indicators of his readiness for a call-up to the majors.

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ā Detroit Tigers (@tigers) March 15, 2026 Michael Oliveto and top IFA prospect, outfielder Cris Rodriguez, also seem bound for a little Complex League work, but Oliveto in particular should handle the pitching there and get to Lakeland this summer. Weāre also waiting for SS/2B Franyerber Montilla to return to Lakeland. The slick fielding, left-handed hitter is another one weāll be looking for strength gains from after his rehabiliation from a torn ACL last summer. Heās tracking for a return sometime in May as he wraps up his rehab work. Finally, the huge amount of pitcher injuries among recent draft picks remains a major source of frustration as the Tigers try to get them healthy and their development underway. Owen Hall is reportedly fairly close to pitching after a shoulder injury ruined his first pro season. However, LHP Paul Wilson, LHP Ethan Schiefelbein, RHP Zach Swanson, RHP River Hamilton, RHP Michael Massey, and more, are still on the shelf. On the plus side, we have seen two nice efforts each from 2025 second rounder RHP Malachi Witherspoon, and 2025 third rounder LHP Ben Jacobs. Witherspoonās heavy sinker is sitting 96.1 mph and heās topped 98 mph in both his outings for the Flying Tigers. His sweeping, hard cutter and curveball are sharp but inconsistent, but crucially he hasnāt walked a batter through a pair of four inning outings to start the year. Heās throwing strikes, and his stuff is pretty untouchable at that level. Even so, there have still been quite a few waste pitches in the mix and that has to change. Of course, his tight, funky delivery and college walk rates still speak to the high relief risk, but Witherspoon has major league caliber stuff already. Hereās Malachi Witherspoonās full professional debut.
ā Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) April 5, 2026 Jacobs is a little more of a command lefty type, with a solid slider that flashes plus, and a good changeup. The velocity and movement on his fourseamer was erratic in his junior year, helping him slip to the Tigers. So far this spring though, heās averaged 94 mph with an average of 18.1 inches of induced vertical break. That much movement, with his quick arm and pretty flat plane to the top of the zone, makes that an above average fourseamer. Even better, Jacobs has pretty good command of everything already, and has looked like a man pitching to inexperienced boys in his two outings. Witherspooon certainly has the bigger stuff right now, but Jacobs is a lot more likely to have the command to turn into a mid-rotation starter in time. If Jacobs can gain a little more velocity and tune his mix with sinkers and cutters to take some pressure off the fastball, he could become a really good starting pitcher, but thereās a leap required, whereas Witherspoonās sinker and breaking balls are already pretty ferocious. I canāt imagine either is long for Lakeland though, and once the weather warms up in the north you can expect them both in West Michigan. Hopefully it wonāt be too long until we get Yost, Oliveto, and Cris Rodriguez to Lakeland, though the latter will probably spend the most time in the Complex League and at 18, isnāt really expected to handle the Florida State League just yet. Fellow top 2026 IFA signings, OF Randy Santana and C Manuel Bolivar will be fun to track in the Dominican Summer League starting in June.