Spencer Torkelson’s May Slide Is Becoming a Real Problem for the Tigers

After a strong stretch of power, Spencer Torkelson has become a non-factor at the plate again for the Detroit Tigers, leading many to believe what his future holds.

Detroit Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson (20) looks at the infield dirt after coming up empty on a diving attempt to stop a line drive down the first base line. | Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

The month of May has been horrible for the Detroit Tigers, as they've now lost 11 of their last 13 games, falling further back in the AL Central standings. Looking to right the ship enough to stay afloat before a handful of key players return from injury, there are problems on the field regarding who is healthy.

One of the main hitters that helped get Detroit back to the playoffs was former first overall pick Spencer Torkelson. Collecting another 30+ home run season, Torkelson has looked as if he's forgotten how to hit the ball with power since his franchise-tying home run streak of five games.

For the Tigers, they need Torkelson to be a factor with the bat in his hands. He's never going to be a player who hits close to a .300 AVG, so he needs to be the main power threat in the offense. His six home runs on the season rank in a second-place tie behind Dillon Dingler's eight.

Detroit Can't Ignore Torkelson's May Numbers

Detroit Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson (20) runs onto the field. | Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

It's unfair to say that Torkelson hasn't been effective for the Tigers this season, because he has, but amid this kind of stretch, it's easy to look at the negatives rather than hope for more positives. In this case, numbers-wise, it hasn't looked good for the Detroit first baseman.

Going into the second game of the four-game set against the Cleveland Guardians, Torkelson brings a May stat line that looks as follows:

.125 AVG/.231 OBP/.232 SLG/.463 OPS - one home run, five RBIs, seven walks, 27 strikeouts

April was a much better month for Torkelson after getting out of the gates ice cold, finishing the first full month of the 2026 campaign, hitting .247 and holding a .871 OPS with five home runs and nine RBIs with 16 walks and 26 strikeouts.

Given where the Tigers are with the handful of injuries, Torkelson will continue to get reps for A.J. Hinch with the hope he can turn it around. This stretch has sucked the life out of this team, but it just takes one game for everything to start clicking again.

If there's one positive for Detroit this season, it's that Torkelson has delivered two walk-off hits and has demonstrated his ability to perform under pressure in the past. He needs to overcome the pattern of alternating good and bad seasons. If he can do that, it will help improve his current -0.9 WAR in 2026 and ideally push it into the positive range.