Tigers Select Son of MLB Hall of Famer in Latest First-Round Mock Draft

The Detroit Tigers’ mock draft pick not only has great MLB bloodlines, but he also fits the type of prep players the franchise has selected of late.

Detroit Tigers president of baseball operations Scott Harris (left) and manager A.J. Hinch. | Evan Petzold / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

When it comes to high school baseball players, the Detroit Tigers definitely have a type.

Look back at the franchise’s last three first-round picks and one will find that all three are left-handed hitters. That includes prized prospect Max Clark, who was drafted in 2023; Bryce Rainer, their first-round back in 2024; and infielder Jordan Yost, who was the first of two first-round picks last year. All three were high school stars.

That doesn’t include rookie Kevin McGonigle, who could be the AL rookie of the year this season. The No. 37 overall pick in 2023 — the same draft as Clark — is also a left-handed hitter.

The Tigers know how to pick them. If MLB.com’s latest mock draft is any indication, then Detroit will go that path again with its No. 22 pick. Only this time the last name will be a familiar one to Tigers fans.

The Tigers’ Next First-Round Pick?

Jim Thome (left) and his son Landon Thome. | Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images

MLB.com’s mock draft came after the conclusion of the MLB Combine in Arizona earlier this week. The site’s three prospect writers got together for a live draft and ended up giving the Tigers infielder Landon Thome out of Nazareth Academy in Illinois.

Yep, that Thome. As in Jim Thome. As in Baseball Hall of Famer Jim Thome. As in former Tigers nemesis Jim Thome.

MLB.com’s Jim Callis wrote that the Tigers’ history of taking left-handed prep bats in the past three years was part of the logic in taking him for the Tigers at this selection.

“We like him. We’ve ranked him high all year. People love the hitter. People love the kid.” Callis wrote.

The younger Thome is currently committed to play college baseball at Florida State. He’s ranked as the No. 1 player in Illinois. But, if he’s taken in the first round he’ll likely head to the pros. The slot bonus for the selection is more than $4 million. That will likely trump a college commitment and is surely millions more than Jim Thome got coming out of school.

Landon Thome was just named the Illinois Gatorade Player of the Year after a senior year in which he batted .535 with seven home runs, 29 RBI, with eight triples and 49 stolen bases. He played both second base and third base.

Jim Thome played 22 MLB seasons, much of which was with teams the Tigers played regularly, including Cleveland, the Chicago White Sox and the Minnesota Twins. He was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2018 and is one of a handful of players with 600 or more career home runs with 612.