The Tools series continues with the best runners in the Detroit Tigers system

There was a time when the Detroit Tigers were known for their team speed. That time was 110 years ago.

With apologies to Ron LeFlore, Brian Hunter, and Roger Cedeno, it’s been a pretty slow century in Detroit. Since the last expansion the Detroit Tigers rank 28th out of 30 teams in stolen bases, ahead of only the Cubs and the Giants.

But it’s never too late to get back into running! And Major League Baseball seems intent on making speed a bigger part of the game again. Last year’s rule changes resulted in a jump of more than 1,000 stolen bases, and a 5% increase in SB success rate. The good news? The Tigers took part in this newfound baserunning freedom, nearly doubling their team steal total from 47 in 2022 to 85 in 2023. The bad news? That still ranked in the bottom five in baseball.

But speed isn’t just about stolen bases. There’s plenty of offensive value to be had in knowing when to move up 90 feet, or aggressively taking two bases. And speed is unique among the five scouting tools in that it affects both sides of the game.

The 2023 Detroit Tigers ended up doing quite well in terms of team baserunning. And fans got a glimpse of a Tigers prospect whose speed may make him one of the best defensive outfielders in the big leagues next year.

Before we get to the list, let’s briefly discuss how speed is scouted. The most common (and arguably best) way to scout speed is to measure home-to-first running times. Top-of-the-scale (80-grade) times are 3.9 seconds for left-handed hitters and 4.0 seconds for right-handed hitters. Speed grades then drop 10 points for each added tenth of a second.

In showcase events players are measured by how quickly they run 60 yards in a straight line. That’s fun, but it’s something that happens in games roughly zero times per season. Still, it’s worth knowing that a 6.9-second 60 is roughly average, and anything under 6.3 seconds is elite.

And then there’s Statcast’s sprint speed ratings. They tell us 27 feet-per-second is league average, while anything above 30 feet-per-second is elite. We’ll reference all three measurements in our rankings below. And if you haven’t already, be sure to check out out lists of the best hitters and best power hitters in the system.

Detroit Tigers Top Speed Tools

1 – Seth Stephenson

Seth Stephenson is one of the fastest players in all of professional baseball. The native Texan has clocked 60-yard-dash times as low as 6.2 seconds, and he went 39-for-43 on stolen base attempts over two seasons at Temple College. Stephenson transferred to Tennessee for his junior season in 2022, going 25-for-30 on steal attempts there before a perfect 9-for-9 in pro ball after the Tigers drafted him in the 7th round. And then Stephenson ran wild in 2023, swiping 70 bases in 85 tries between Low-A Lakeland and High-A West Michigan. His 70 steals were the fourth most in the minors last year, and the third most from a Tigers minor leaguer since 2000.

Stephenson is extremely aggressive on the basepaths, with good instincts and a lighting-quick first step, and he also uses his speed to hustle for extra-bases. He was an infielder until arriving at Tennessee, so Stephenson’s reads and reactions in the outfield still need a little work. But right now his near-elite speed still allows him make up for false steps or late reads.

2 – Parker Meadows

Parker Meadows gets our second slot in part because we have more data on him than anyone else. There’s his 6.5 60-yard-dash times as an amateur. We’ve seen him play in person dozens of times over the past five years, with Meadows consistently getting from home to first in 4.0-4.1 seconds. And we also have the benefit of Statcast data, which puts him in the 90th percentile in terms of sprint speed. He ranks higher when broken down into various splits, and we’ve seen him reach elite speed in the big leagues.

But Parker Meadows hasn’t been a terribly prolific base stealer in pro ball. He was just 26-for-43 on steal attempts in his first three seasons. Meadows did improve to 17-for-19 in 2022, and last year he was an excellent 27-for-30 between Toledo and Detroit. He seems to have sharpened his instincts, and now there’s a good chance he’ll be the first Detroit Tigers players to steal 30 bases in a season since Rajai Davis in 2014. But even if he doesn’t, his wheels offer plenty of value in terms of baserunning and defense. Meadows hustles singles into doubles, and devours ground when legging out triples or chasing a fly ball in the gaps.

Can confirm @ThatDanHasty on the Willie Mays catch by Parker Meadows 👀👀👀 pic.twitter.com/DM7uiQHXbj

— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) August 1, 2021

3 – Max Clark

Max Clark was arguably the most tooled up prospect in the 2023 draft class. And the most readily obvious of those tools is his plus-plus speed. According to Perfect Game, Clark clocked a 6.33 60-yard dash and a home-to-first time of just over 4.0 seconds as an amateur. Clark went 5-for-6 on steal attempts during his 23-game pro debut last summer, but it wouldn’t be a shock to see him steal 30 or more bags in 2024. And, like the two players above him on this list, Clark’s speed also serves him well on defense, where he has a chance to be a plus defender in center field.

Max Clark, OF (Indiana)

The top HS player in the class, Clark has tons of tools, makes a lot of contact and turned in consistent 70-grade run times this summer. Has earned Jacoby Ellsbury comps. pic.twitter.com/S47MoT0cjZ

— Carlos Collazo (@CarlosACollazo) December 6, 2022

 4 – Dom Johnson

If every Detroit Tigers minor leaguer lined up to run a 100-yard dash, there’s a good chance Dom Johnson would win. That may sound odd for someone ranked fourth on our list, but Johnson has numbers to back it up. He ran a ridiculous 6.22 60 at the 2019 Perfect Game National Showcase, and he frequently turned in borderline 80-grade home-to-first times as an amateur. So why isn’t Johnson higher on this list? He just doesn’t use his speed terribly well in games. Johnson went 12-for-15 on steal attempts at Kansas State in 2022, and he’s 22-for-27 in 112 games as a pro. The success rate is good, but he should probably run much more frequently. And his wheels haven’t translated into the outfield, where he fits better in the corners than in center.

Dom Johnson (2022) @KStateBSB @harborhawks with a double to right field. A transfer out of Oklahoma State flashed plus run (4.03, 4.05, 4.12) and some pop in Tuesday’s look. Tooled up player w/ power+speed upside. #PGCape pic.twitter.com/lx98YrvksU

— PG College Baseball (@PGCollegeBall) July 24, 2021

5 – Wenceel Perez

There’s a sizable drop off after the top four in the organization, with a large group of players with above-average speed who might flash a plus time here or there. Wenceel Perez gets our nod because of how he puts his above-average wheels to use. We’ve been watching Perez in person for years, and he consistently gets to first in about 4.25 seconds from the right side of the plate, and about 4.15 second from the left side. And he’s always been a good, aggressive baserunner. Perez has stolen at least 18 bases in each full season of his career, including a career-high 26 in 2023. And he’s 66-for-80 (82.5%) over the past three seasons. Last year he also put his speed to use in the outfield for the first time, where he showed good range and solid instincts.

Wenceel Perez with a low liner that he hustles into a leadoff double. pic.twitter.com/QFWt8orXHg

— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) July 19, 2023

Honorable Mentions

David Smith probably deserves to rank higher, we just don’t have information about exactly how fast he is. But stolen bases have always been a part of Smith’s game. He went 72-for-82 on steal attempts in college, and a perfect 5-for-5 in his pro debut last year. Gage Workman has been a prolific base stealer in pro ball, and he has well above-average speed when underway. Peyton Graham is similar to Workman in many ways, and he swiped 16 bags in just 57 games last year. Ben Malgeri’s above-average wheels play best on defense, but he’s good for double-digit steals each year. And J.D. McLaughlin is a terrific athlete who posted sub-6.6 60-yard-dash times as an amateur. He also went 12-for-12 on steal attempts last year.

Future Projection

Generally speaking, there isn’t a lot of forward projection with the speed tool. Players do occasionally grow into their body and athleticism (see Julio Rodriguez), but usually they get slower as they age. So here we’re just going to mention a few young international players who seem gifted at stealing bases. Randy Perea was a little old for the DSL last year, but the 19-year-old stole 23 bases in 47 games. Franyerber Montilla and Javier Osorio both stole 11 bases in just over 30 games last season. And Reylin Perez and Anibal Salas are plus athletes who are still learning how to use their speed in games.

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