February 20, 2026

Detroit Tigers pitching prospect Troy Melton was called up in July last season and pitched well in his first taste of the majors. The former fourth-round draft pick recorded a 2.76 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, and an 11.7 percent K-BB% in 16 appearances (four starts, 45 2/3 innings pitched). As solid as his ERA and WHIP were, they were skewed by his debut start, in which he allowed six earned runs on seven hits and two walks; without that start, the right-hander posted a 1.77 ERA and 0.91 WHIP over the other 15 appearances. Although impressive, a 4.68 xFIP and low 7.09 K/9 should give managers pause before thinking the San Diego State product would be able to replicate that success over a full season of work. Even so, the 6-foot-4 hurler does have a history of striking out batters at a high rate, even punching out 56 batters in 36 1/3 IP (37.8 percent K%) at Triple-A prior to his call-up, so there is potential to increase his K% at the major league level, which should help keep the ERA at a reasonable level. Still, with the Tigers adding Justin Verlander and Framber Valdez this offseason, Melton does not have a spot in the rotation and could begin the year in the minors. As such, there is no need to draft him in most standard-sized leagues, but he is a name to keep an eye on when he is called back up, so long as he gets put into the rotation rather than coming out of the bullpen. The 25-year-old is ranked 339 overall at RotoBaller.--Jarod Rupp