Tigers Star Prospect Blasts Home Run in Dominican Republic WBC Exhibition
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Most World Baseball Classic teams are playing their exhibition games stateside. The Detroit Tigers decided to do it differently.
The Tigers went to Santo Domingo in the Dominican Republic to play two exhibition games against the national team that will play in the WBC. The first game was Tuesday. On Wednesday, the Tigers will play split squad games with the Dominican Republic and with Panama before heading back to Lakeland, Fla.
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Detroit took many of its top players, including top prospect Kevin McGonigle. The Tigers even let him hit leadoff. The result was something else.
Kevin McGonigle’s Home Run
MLB's No. 2 prospect Kevin McGonigle demolishes the first pitch of the game 🚀@tigers | @RoadtoDetroit | @MLBNetwork pic.twitter.com/n0GUPeSQBu
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) March 3, 2026
McGonigle faced Athletics pitcher Luis Severino, who is playing for the Dominican Republic. McGonigle sent the veteran’s first pitch into the seats.
He’s had an exceptional spring training so far and has put himself squarely in the race to make the opening day roster, even though he hasn’t taken a single at-bat at Triple-A yet. His mature approach at the plate and his above-average defense has impressed everyone from manager A.J. Hinch to pitcher Tarik Skubal.
McGonigle has been building to this for more than a year. He started last season with a sprained ankle that limited him to 88 games, but he produced. He slashed .305/.408/.583 with 19 home runs and 80 RBI.
In doing so, he earned a host of awards, including Midwest League player of the week, player of the month and the prospect of the year. He was named to the All-MiLB Prospect First Team and a Baseball America Minor League All-Star.
Then, he went to the Arizona Fall League to get additional at-bats due to the injury. He lit up the AFL. He slashed .362/.500/.710 in 19 games. He also led the AFL with 12 extra-base hits and 49 total bases. He ranked second runs scored with 22 and five home runs, while he was third in slugging percentage at 1.210.
He won the AFL player of the week award twice, was named an AFL rising star and was named the AFL’s most valuable player. That’s a lot of hardware for one player in one season.
McGonigle is still on a non-roster invite. So, if he makes the opening day roster the Tigers will have to sacrifice a player off their 40-man roster. The way he’s played to this point, it could be worth it — especially if he’s able to lock down a position that has been a problem for Detroit, such as shortstop or third base.
Matthew Postins is an award-winning sports journalist who covers Major League Baseball for OnSI. He also covers the Big 12 Conference for Heartland College Sports.
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