Shortstop Trey Sweeney promoted from Triple-A Toledo

Well this didn’t take long. Shortstop Trey Sweeney, acquired just over two weeks ago in the deal that sent Jack Flaherty to the Los Angeles Dodgers, will be called up for his major league debut during this weekend’s home series against the New York Yankees. Things will come full circle for the 24-year-old, left-handed hitting infielder, as the Yankees were the team that drafted him back in 2021 out of Eastern Illinois University with the 20th overall pick.

Kiley McDaniel of ESPN was the first to report the news, which was quickly confirmed by Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press. As of this writing there’s no word on a corresponding move. Sweeney will need to be added to the 40-man roster as well as the active roster.

In 11 games with the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens, Sweeney has been on fire at the plate. He’s posted a 186 wRC+, 86 percent better than league average production. He’s hit two home runs, six doubles, and stolen four bases in that stretch.

With the Dodgers, Sweeney posted just an 87 wRC+ and 13 home runs across 440 plate appearances with their Triple-A affiliate, but as they did in acquiring Hao-Yu Lee for Michael Lorenzen in July of 2023, they appear to have added a prospect in the midst of a breakout. We’ll have to see how well he can adjust to major league pitching, and whether this recent success will stall at the game’s highest level. Sweeney does have fairly sizable platoon splits, so we’ll also have to see how much they play him against left-handed pitching.

Sweeney has struck out in a little over 25 percent of his plate appearances this season overall, with a walk rate just over 10 percent. He holds an excellent .425 wOBA against all fastball types in 2024. He’s closer to league average against fastballs 95 mph or faster. He’s below average against offspeed pitches and breaking stuff, but since July 1 his numbers have been on an uptrend against both, though much more so against offspeed pitches. We’ll see how well he can develop his ability to lay off sliders and curveballs at the major league level.

There are still a few questions about his defensive ability at the shortstop position, but he’s looked pretty solid so far in Toledo. Of his 11 games, he’s played shortstop in nine of them, third base once, and hit out of the designated hitter spot once. He’s versatile enough to play anywhere on the diamond, and you know the Tigers love their versatility.

The Tigers have several obvious options to open a 40-man spot. Potentially, Wenceel Perez could be placed on the 60-day injured list, which would allow them to send Akil Baddoo or Bligh Madris back to Toledo. They could also release Gio Urshela, who will be a free agent at year’s end and has really struggled. That would be my bet. Zach McKinstry, who fits a similar mold as Sweeney, with less raw power, is another potential option, though less likely in my opinion. They could also DFA Ryan Kreidler to open up the 40-man spot, and send down Madris or Baddoo, but those options seem less likely. One would assume Sweeney will take the place of an infielder, but we’ll have to see it the same way.

Either way, this should add a little spice to the Tigers surprisingly strong second half that is underway. Despite a decimated rotation and missing their two best hitters in Riley Greene and Kerry Carpenter, who just returned for the three-game set with the Mariners, the Tigers have been on a bit of a tear. Since Sweeney needed to be added to the 40-man roster this offseason anyway, this is a good time to give him a look and see how well he handles it, as well as allowing him to start acclimating before going into the offseason.