There was something rather ironic about the Detroit Tigers posting their Spring Training schedule on Thursday afternoon. After finishing a series sweep of the Seattle Mariners on Thursday, Detroit promoted both infielders Trey Sweeney and Jace Jung. The Sweeney news, as first reported by Kiley McDaniel of ESPN, was the one of the two prospects Detroit acquired in the deal for Jack Flaherty.
The call-up of Jung, who was first reported by Evan Petzold of the Freep.com, has been playing third and second most of the season in Toledo. While the moves may have caught many off-guard, perhaps manager A.J. Hinch in an unsolicited comment as highlighted by Chris McCosky of the Detroit News, gave everyone some epic foreshadowing.
“We’re going to get younger and we’re going to get better,”
In other words, over the next few days, the Detroit Tigers are going to roll out one of the many possible Spring Training and beyond Opening Day lineups in 2025.
What to expect from Trey Sweeney and Jace Jung.
With the promotions, there has not been a corresponding move as the team more than likely will announce it on Friday, but this continues the trend of giving those at-bats, as Scott Harris has said, earmarked for the prospects in the system. Since Sweeney has arrived, he has continued a recent trend since July 1st, which has been hitting with power, with a .221 ISO and wOBA of .415. That translates to five home runs, 10 doubles and a triple between Triple-A Oklahoma City and 11 games in Toledo. Both he and Jung are in the first seasons at the Triple-A level.
Jung is hitting .257/.377/.454 with 15 home runs and 60 RBI. He has been seeing mainly time at 3rd but has been playing second as well. The 4th ranked prospect in our Top 30 list, is coming off a season in which he hit 28 home runs between Erie and West Michigan in 2023.
Jung has never played third until this season and there has been an adjustment, with 16 errors in 65 games this season, so it could be possible he and Sweeney could see time at the position.
The mid-August call-ups of Jace Jung and Trey Sweeney by the Detroit Tigers signal a strategic move by the organization to assess their in-house talent ahead of the 2025 season. By promoting these two promising infielders, the Tigers are getting an early look at how they fit into the future roster, allowing the front office to better evaluate their needs going into the off-season.
This approach not only provides valuable Major League experience for Jung and Sweeney but also informs the team’s decisions in free agency, should Detroit decide to spend “big”. By identifying areas of strength and potential gaps, the Tigers can more effectively allocate resources in the free-agent market, ensuring they build a competitive roster for the 2025 campaign.
Pressed into duty
There have been several highlights to this roster in transition like this, outside of Colt Keith signing the extension and making the Opening Day roster. Wenceel Pérez has been showing not only his ability to hit, but has shown he has been a solid defender, posting a 3 Outs Above Average. Team that up with Parker Meadows in center and the offensive production of Justyn-Henry Malloy in the absence of Riley Greene, Detroit has been able to make the last month or so, with all the injuries to Greene and Carpenter and the pitching staff, at least entertaining.
As far as who will move up to Toledo as possibilities, down in Erie, infielder Hao-Yu Lee was pulled after two at-bats and Trei Cruz did not play as he had the evening off. Cruz can play the outfield, and Lee has seen time at second and third. Another candidate to consider is Gage Workman, who has been putting together a nice string of few weeks as of late.
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Chris Brown