Kevin McGonigle Continues to Make Opening Day Roster Choice Clear for Tigers
In this story:
The Detroit Tigers are just over a week away from Opening Day, and though it may be hard to believe with the weather, baseball will be back in the Motor City in short order.
Needless to say, the biggest narrative and decision looming around the team is the status of top prospect Kevin McGonigle and whether or not he is going to break camp with the team. At the start of spring, it seemed unlikely at best given his lack of experience even at Double-A let alone never stepping foot in Triple-A, but his spring has spoken for itself.
With the latest example on Monday being an absolutely clobbered home run in a victory over the Philadelphia Phillies, McGonigle does not just look like he belongs on the roster; he looks like one of the best hitters on the team already.
A final decision is going to have to be made at some point over the next week, but with the way McGonigle is swinging the bat, it's not a decision at all.
Tigers Have No Choice But to Put McGonigle on Opening Day Roster
Detroit has clearly been flirting with the idea by continuing to give the 21-year-old opportunities to prove why he belongs in the big leagues right out of the gate. Instead of folding and showing his inexperience, McGonigle has instead ramped up his performance and looks as great as ever.
In total this spring, he is slashing an incredible .267/.463/.600 with 10 walks compared to just six strikeouts, showing his maturity as a hitter is as high as any prospect to come through this farm system in a long time.
For a team that says they are serious about winning this season, leaving McGonigle in Triple-A to begin the year would run contradictory to that as he has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt to be able to help right now.
Tigers Promoting McGonigle Right Away Could Pay Off
While the service time manipulation and getting an extra year of control is a factor, so is the potential PPI pick Detroit could be awarded should McGonigle go on to win American League Rookie of the Year if he was promoted for Opening Day.
If the Tigers do believe McGonigle is that talented -- which clearly they should -- taking the gamble and allowing him to do it right out of the gate may pay off with an extra first round pick right in the same range where they took the slugger a couple of years ago.
Detroit is doing things the long way when it comes to getting prospects to the big leagues and the rebuild which has opened up the championship window, but that window may not ever be more open than it is right now this year.
The Tigers could and should see it the same way, and if they do, then there really is no reason for McGonigle not to be taking the field with this team from the very first game this year.
Michael Brauner is a 2022 graduate of the University of Alabama with a degree in Sports Media. He covers various MLB teams across the On SI network and you can also find his work on Yellowhammer News covering the Alabama Crimson Tide and Auburn Tigers as well as on the radio producing and co-hosting 'The Opening Kickoff' every weekday morning on 105.5 WNSP FM in Mobile, Alabama.