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Josue Briceno Firmly Off Stash Radar with New Injury
Detroit Tigers catcher/first base prospect Josue Briceno (undisclosed) was placed on the 7-day injured list at Triple-A Toledo with an undisclosed injury. He looked to have injured his ankle trying to get back to second base and subsequently had to leave the game this past Sunday, so it could be related to that. Regardless, it has all but guaranteed that the Tigers' fifth-ranked prospect will not debut in 2026. It has been a rough year anyway, with the left-handed hitter being limited to 42 total games due to injuries, only 15 of which came with the Mud Hens, where he hit .196 with zero home runs and a 32.2 percent strikeout rate. The 6-foot-4 slugger will hopefully be healthy to begin 2027 and could make a case for an MLB debut, but for now, the 21-year-old can be left on the waiver wire in redraft leagues.
Source: Emily Waldon
Source: Emily Waldon
Josue Briceno Off Stash Radar With Slow Start at Triple-A
Detroit Tigers catcher/first base prospect Josue Briceno has yet to find his footing since being promoted to Triple-A Toledo, now 7-for-41 (.171) with zero home runs and a 31.3 percent strikeout rate through his first 12 games for the Mud Hens. The Tigers' fifth-ranked prospect had a delayed start to the 2026 campaign due to wrist surgery he underwent before the season got underway, but hit .297 with eight home runs in 17 games for Double-A Erie before earning the promotion to the minors' highest level. The 2024 Arizona Fall League MVP looks like a long shot to crack the majors in 2026, but with a patient approach (career walk rate of 12.8 percent), along with highly rated hit (50) and power tools (60), there is a good chance he'll have an impact in 2027.
Source: MLB.com
Source: MLB.com
Josue Briceno Hoping There is One More Promotion For Him Coming Soon
Detroit Tigers catcher/first base prospect Josue Briceno was promoted to the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens on August 11 and is hoping he can play his way to a promotion to the Tigers big league club. Briceno is coming back from a right wrist injury that sidelined him for much of this season and has played for four different levels of the minors this season, combining to hit nine homers and 25 RBI in 104 at bats with 18 runs scored while hitting .279. In just three games with the Mud Hens, Briceno already has three RBI and is hitting 3-for-11. The left-handed hitter is the No. 5 prospect for the Tigers and is blessed with 60-grade power. At the big-league level, the Tigers are well stocked at the catcher position with Dillon Dingler and Eduardo Valencia with Spencer Torkelson manning first base. It's looking like 2027 might be a more likely timeline for Briceno to join the Tigers.
Source: Minor League Baseball
Source: Minor League Baseball
Tigers Prospect Josue Briceno Promoted to Triple-A
The Detroit Tigers promoted catcher/first base prospect Josue Briceno, MLB Pipeline's No. 54 overall prospect, to Triple-A Toledo this week, according to MLB Pipeline. Briceno is getting the call to the highest minor-league level after hitting a combined .280/.373/.591 with a .964 OPS, nine home runs, 22 RBI, and 17 runs scored in only 27 games (110 plate appearances) at the rookie-level Florida Complex League and with Single-A Lakeland and Double-A Erie. The 21-year-old left-handed-hitting Venezuelan has 60-grade power and is considered the Tigers' No. 4 overall prospect behind outfielders Max Clark (already in the big leagues) and Zyhir Hope, and shortstop Bryce Rainer. The 6-foot-4, 200-pounder is pretty athletic despite his size and position, and his strength from the left side of the plate is what makes him stand out as a catcher long-term for fantasy purposes. Briceno could stand to improve his plate discipline, but if he can do that early on next year at Toledo, he could force the Tigers' hand for an MLB promotion in 2027.
Source: MLB Pipeline
Source: MLB Pipeline
Eduardo Valencia Homers Twice in his Seventh Big-League Game
Detroit Tigers rookie catcher/first baseman Eduardo Valencia had a day to remember on Tuesday in the 14-0 win over the visiting Baltimore Orioles in just his seventh game in the majors. Valencia went 4-for-5 at the plate with two home runs, four RBI, three runs scored, and a strikeout to boost his season average to .529 and his OPS to 1.791 in a small sample size of seven big-league contests. It was his first game action with the Tigers since being recalled from Triple-A Toledo on Monday. Per MLB Pipeline, Valencia is considered Detroit's No. 11 overall prospect. The 6-foot-1, 180-pounder also homered in his first major-league at-bat on July 9, and he now has four homers in his first seven games in Detroit. Valencia's effort to lower his hands in his batting stance to add more lift this year has certainly paid off, as he also clubbed 17 home runs in 81 games at Triple-A in 2026. The Tigers are rolling with Valencia as Dillon Dingler's backup for what looks like the rest of the year.
Source: MLB.com
Source: MLB.com
Spencer Torkelson has First Multi-Homer Game of the Year
Detroit Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson continues to be a solid power source for fantasy managers, if nothing else. In the dominant 7-0 shutout win over the hosting Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim on Saturday night, Torkelson went 2-for-4 at the plate with two home runs, a season-high four RBI, and one strikeout. He clubbed a three-run homer to set the tone in the first inning and added a solo blast in the fifth inning to carry Detroit's offense in the easy win. The 26-year-old right-handed slugger and former first overall pick in 2020 out of Arizona State is hitting just .209 (69-for-330) on the season, but he has added 18 home runs, 47 RBI, and 40 runs for fantasy managers as a solid source of power despite all the swing and miss and the career-high 32.7% strikeout rate. Torkelson has four home runs in 12 games so far in July, but he's also hitting just .156 (7-for-45) with a .647 OPS, 10 RBI, six runs, four walks, and 17 strikeouts in 49 plate appearances.
Source: MLB.com
Source: MLB.com
Josue Briceno Rehabbing, is a 2026 Debut in Play?
Detroit Tigers catching/first baseman prospect Josue Briceno (wrist) continues to work his way back from wrist surgery that he had before the season began, and is 10 games into his rehab assignment that has thus far been split between Single-A and with the team's Complex League affiliate, going 7-for-29 (.241) with a pair of doubles, a home run, and a 5:6 BB:K. The Tigers' third-ranked prospect is coming off a promising 2025 campaign in which he impressed at High-A to the tune of a .296/.422/.602 slash line through 55 games, which included an 11-game stretch in which he blasted eight home runs, before earning a promotion to Double-A midseason. Though Double-A proved more challenging, he still hit .232 with a 12.6 percent walk rate as one of the younger players at that level. The 6-foot-4 Venezuelan possesses highly rated hit and power tools, and although a 2026 debut is unlikely, the 21-year-old is worth monitoring, and he could be making a fantasy impact in 2027.
Source: MiLB.com
Source: MiLB.com
Is Colt Keith a Worthy Waiver-Wire Target Ahead of Potential Power Breakout?
Across 209 plate appearances in 2026, Detroit Tigers infielder Colt Keith has hit .267/.311/.390 with four home runs, 16 RBI, 27 runs scored, and three stolen bases. While the 24-year-old's power output for the season has been disappointing, he may be on the verge of a breakout after hitting three home runs on Monday night in Detroit's win over the Houston Astros. Keith owns a 8.5% barrel rate and 42.5% hard-hit rate on the year - far from elite power metrics, but capable marks that point to double-digit homer power over the course of a full season. The lefty-swinging Keith has logged just 11 plate appearances against left-handed pitching this season, so his platoon usage holds down his playing time ceiling. Still, he profiles as a modest five-category contributor against right-handed pitching and could be worth streaming off the waiver wire in weeks when Detroit faces a string of right-handed starting pitchers.
Source: RotoBaller
Source: RotoBaller
Colt Keith Goes Off on Monday Night With Three Home Runs
Detroit Tigers infielder Colt Keith had a day to remember on Monday night in Houston in the Tigers' 9-3 win over the hosting Astros at Daikin Park. Keith went 3-for-4 at the plate with three home runs, a career-high six RBI, and a strikeout to boost his season batting average to .267 and his OPS to .701. The 24-year-old left-handed hitter went 62 games to begin the 2026 season without clearing the fences before hitting his first home run of the year on June 11 against the Minnesota Vikings, and now he sits at four round-trippers after an out-of-nowhere display of power. The former fifth-rounder in 2020 came into Monday's series opener with a .257/.299/.335 slash line, .634 OPS, just one home run, 10 RBI, 24 runs scored, and three stolen bases in 191 at-bats. Keith hit exactly 13 home runs in each of his first two years in the big leagues. He's on a homer binge right now, but fantasy managers shouldn't expect it to last. Keith has minimal power and speed, but he is eligible at first, second, and third base in Yahoo leagues, which makes him more attractive as bench depth in deeper fantasy leagues.
Source: MLB.com
Source: MLB.com
Spencer Torkelson Remains a Viable Power Bat to Target on the Waiver Wire
Across his first 152 plate appearances of 2026, Detroit Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson is hitting .209/.329/.411 with six home runs, 15 RBI, and 13 runs scored. The 26-year-old's season has taken a strange shape, as five of his six home runs came in a five-day period between April 22 and April 26. Outside of that brief power surge, Torkelson has largely struggled. While his 14.5% walk rate is excellent, Torkelson's 30.9% strikeout rate puts a firm ceiling on his batting average upside. Still, his 15.9% barrel rate suggests that Torkelson remains a potent power threat. As the weather starts to heat up in Detroit, Torkelson should start to hit the ball out of the ballpark with more consistency. In deeper leagues where he may have been dropped, Torkelson profiles as a power bat worth targeting off the waiver wire.
Source: RotoBaller
Source: RotoBaller
