Two Tigers Prospects Land in Top Five of MLB Analyst's Latest Rankings
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The MLB offseason provides a great opportunity for evaluators and analysts alike to take stock of the prospect landscape across the league, allowing for updated farm system rankings and top prospect lists.
That includes MLB analyst Keith Law of The Athletic, who published his highly-anticipated top 100 rankings on Monday morning (subscription required).
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Since the Detroit Tigers have one of the most well-regarded prospect pipelines around the league, it should come as no surprise that he included several future Tigers, but he went so far as to rank Detroit's two top prospects within his league-wide top five.
Future Tigers Max Clark, Kevin McGonigle Land in Keith Law's Top Five MLB Prospects
While Pittsburgh Pirates prospect Konnor Griffin claimed the top spot in Law's newest rankings, shortstop Kevin McGonigle came in at No. 2, and his likely future teammate, outfielder Max Clark, nabbed another premium spot at No. 5.
"McGonigle’s 2025 season started a little late because of injury, but once he arrived, he mashed, hitting .372/.462/.648 in 36 games in High A, and then hitting .254/.369/.550 in 46 games in Double A, while walking more than he struck out at both levels," Law wrote. "And he only turned 21 in late August."
Law had McGonigle in his top spot in last year's midseason rankings, and the prospect analyst noted that McGonigle didn't do anything to lose that spot, it was just that Griffin's ascension has been too absurd to ignore.
"Clark has been overshadowed by his teammate and fellow 2023 draftee McGonigle, but is still a potential All-Star in his own right, a true center fielder with speed, a strong approach and above-average power right now that could still get to plus," Law added on his No. 5 prospect.
Tigers fans should be teeming with excitement for what this duo could ultimately bring to the Major League club. It's a rarity for one team to have two consensus top-five prospects in their pipeline, and the fact that they play premium defensive positions in addition to their offensive upside means that even if they fall a bit short of their ceilings with their bats, they will still be positive contributors at the MLB level.
Clark, the top-ranked true outfielder in Law's rankings, more than held his own as a 20-year-old playing at the Double-A level. In 43 games with Erie, he slashed .251/.360/.439 while hitting seven home runs and stealing seven bases.
Detroit already has an impressive nucleus of talent that has made the club a force to be reckoned with in each of the past two seasons. Offense has been a bit of a sore spot at times, but with McGonigle and Clark on their way in a hurry, that may not be the case for long.
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Kyle Morton has covered various sports from amateur to professional level athletics. A graduate of Fordham University, Kyle specializes in MLB and NHL coverage while having previous bylines with SB Nation, The Hockey Writers, HighSchoolOT, and Sports World News. He spent time working the beat for the NHL's Carolina Hurricanes and is an avid fan of the NHL, MLB, NFL and college basketball. Enjoys the outdoors and hiking in his free time away from sports.