BOSTON — Detroit Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 draft, hit 31 home runs last season.
Less than a year later, Torkelson could be on the verge of being demoted to Triple-A Toledo as his struggles continue into June. Before Sunday’s game, manager AJ Hinch was asked directly if Torkelson should be sent to Triple-A Toledo for the second time in three seasons.
This time, Hinch didn’t say no.
“I don’t know,” Hinch said Sunday, the second day of June. “I knew I would be asked the question when he sat two out of three days. We haven’t talked a lot about things like that this morning. We’re trying to find a way to win the game today. That’s the goal. The most important thing #1.
Hinch was asked a similar question on May 7.
At the time, he gave a very different answer.
“We haven’t talked about it because we really want Tork to realize it here,” Hinch said on May 7. “He’ll show flashes of it. He’s got a little bit of a track record. He’s going to have the opportunity to work through this himself… So no, we haven’t.
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The Tigers did not place Torkelson in the starting lineup for Sunday’s game against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park, placing him for two of the four games in the series. Both times, Torkelson was replaced at first base by veteran third baseman Gio Urshela.
Torkelson, also worth minus-5 defensive runs saved, is 3-for-37 (.081) with three walks and 13 strikeouts in his last 10 games, part of an even worse streak of 3 for 40 (.075) dating back to May 19. He is 0 for 16 (.000) with zero walks and nine strikeouts over his last four games.
The 24-year-old looks completely lost at the plate.
“It’s a little bit of everything, but I would go straight to the approach,” Torkelson said Sunday. “When you can’t see the ball well, you feel like you’re taking one throw a game to do damage, and that’s how you feel. And then when you’re hot, you feel like every throw that you get it’s in the strike zone, it’s a meatball It’s just getting back to it.
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In 2024, Torkelson is hitting .201 with four home runs, 16 walks and 56 strikeouts in 54 games.
He had to wait until May 12 to hit his first home run.
In recent weeks, his resolve has been tested even more.
“It tests me every day,” Torkelson said. “I mean, that’s why you love this game so much, just because it challenges you. It makes it even more enjoyable when you crawl out of it.”
From 2023 to 2024, Torkelson’s batting average fell from .233 to .201, his OPS fell from .758 to .597, and his walk rate fell from 9.8% to 7%.
Hinch discussed Torkelson’s struggles at length.
“I think the approach part is definitely the mental preparation and carrying what you’re trying to do from the circle on the deck to the batter’s box and staying there,” Hinch said, “and reacting to the way the pitcher attacks you and staying very disciplined to the game plan of what you’re trying to do I think he agrees with that I think all hitters tend to hesitate a little bit. when they’re thrown a little differently than expected, or you step into the batter’s box, and this monster (green) looks like it’s pretty close, and all of a sudden, in the middle, in the. The other way, it doesn’t seem as successful as the home run, I think there are some mechanical issues with him, where his weight is distributed, his lower half, trusting a lot of the work that. he does in the cage to be consistent, but it’s much harder than a simple analysis or suggestion Everyone in his ear tries to get him to do something positive.
Biggest problem: Torkelson’s swing isn’t in time for high-velocity fastballs, which wasn’t the case in 2023. His timing issues in 2024 are similar to his timing issues in 2022, which led to a rookie demotion to the Mud Hens at the All-Star Break.
This season, Torkelson is hitting .148 with zero home runs, a .185 slugging percentage and a 23.5% whiff rate against fastballs from right-handed pitchers. Worse, Torkelson is hitting .106 on right-handed fastballs that register at least 93 mph on the radar gun, compared to the league average of .243.
Last season, however, Torkelson hit .283 against 93-plus mph fastballs from right-handers.
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Rookie Colt Keith, who plays second base but may one day outgrow the position if he continues to grow physically, solved his timing problem on fastballs by removing a leg kick and putting implement a toe strike. As a result, the 22-year-old is hitting .343 with an OPS of .873 since the May 8 mechanical adjustment.
Torkelson adopted the same mechanics and swing at the plate throughout his three-year MLB career, spanning 323 games and 1,318 plate appearances.
He made no separate adjustments.
“We talked about a lot of different things,” Hinch said. “Our hitters keep trying to put him in a good position at the decision point. When he has to make the decision to swing, your body has to be in a very good, consistent position. Every guy is a little different. “Tapping foot is not the solution for everyone.”
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In Triple-A Toledo, first baseman Keston Hiura is hitting .231 with six homers, 21 walks and 55 strikeouts in 48 games. He would be the best candidate to replace Torkelson, but he was terrible at the plate in May, hitting .164 with two home runs despite a respectable .315 on-base percentage.
Hiura, who has four years of MLB experience, signed a minor league contract with the Tigers during spring training, which includes an upward mobility clause (also known as an assignment clause) for March 26, June 1 and August 1.
Utility players Bligh Madris and Ryan Vilade also received playing time at first base for Triple-A Toledo this season. Both players have MLB experience in the past, including Vilade’s four games with the Tigers during the second week of May.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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