The future of the Detroit Tigers’ offense may not have arrived at Comerica Park yet — but it will overlap slightly with the Tigers next month, as two of the organization’s top prospects were selected to play in the MLB All-Star Futures Game on July 8 in Seattle.
Colt Keith, the Tigers’ No. 1 prospect (according to MLB Pipeline), and Justyn Henry-Malloy, a key offseason acquisition, were picked for the AL squad on Monday. The seven-inning game is set for Saturday night at T-Mobile Park; the MLB All-Star game will be played July 11, and the Tigers visit the Mariners for a three-game set on July 14-16. MLB Network will broadcast the game.
Keith, who found out on Sunday that he was being promoted from Double-A Erie to Triple-A Toledo, hit .325 with 14 home runs, 18 doubles, 63 strikeouts and 25 walks over 276 plate appearances with the SeaWolves. The Tigers’ fifth-round pick (No. 132 overall) in 2020 out of high school won’t turn 22 until mid-August; he leapt up the prospect charts after going 6-for-6 and hitting for the cycle with two home runs in early May.
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Malloy was acquired from the Atlanta Braves in the offseason Jose Jimenez trade. A sixth-round pick in 2021 by the Braves out of Georgia Tech, Malloy posted a scorching .340/.470/.521 slash line in March and April with the Mud Hens before cooling off. For the season, he’s hitting .264/.386/.434 over 321 plate appearances. After spending much of the early part of the season at third base, Malloy has since moved to the outfield; he’s ranked as the Tigers’ No. 7 prospect.
The Tigers had two representatives at last season’s Futures Game: pitcher Wilmer Flores, now considered the Tigers’ No. 4 prospect, and catcher Dillon Dingler, at No. 14; both have spent the 2023 season with Erie.