The Tigers landed another really good prospect at the trade deadline in 2024.
Since taking over from Al Avila in the fall of 2022, Scott Harris and his staff have done a lot right in building up the Detroit Tigers ’ farm system. In the early going, their two draft classes are off to a strong start and they’ve made several strong trades to prime the organization for long-term success. Catcher Thayron Liranzo is a key example.
Since the 2017 roster teardown, the Tigers have been trying to sign and flip free agent starting pitchers on one year deals for good prospects, with little success. In each of the past two seasons, Harris and company have nailed that type of move. That’s a combination of identifying pitchers who are undervalued and having the coaching and support staff to help them get the most of their game.
Michael Lorenzen had a very good first half and was traded for infielder Hao-Yu Lee in 2023. In 2024, they helped Jack Flaherty to an outstanding season and traded him for both the shortstop that made their outrageous run to the postseason possible in Trey Sweeney, and one of the better catching prospects in the game in Liranzo. Pretty good work.
As with Lee, the Tigers appear to have gotten a young player who was just coming into his own in the 21-year-old Liranzo. In both cases the reviews on the trades nationally was fairly tepid, but particularly for the Flaherty trade with the Dodgers . It was at least a bit of a surprise that the Tigers didn’t get a decent third piece in the trade, but the valuations on Liranzo were probably just out of date.
The young catcher, only weeks past his 21st birthday at the time of the trade, was assigned to the High-A West Michigan Whitecaps. He then spent two months improving his defense and dispelling concerns about his future at the position. At the plate, Liranzo practically lived on base with the amount of walks he drew while hitting .315 and mashing five home runs in 26 games against Midwest League pitching. That strong production continued with a fantastic stint in the Arizona Fall League and suddenly the Flaherty trade is looking pretty good.
Thayron Liranzo hails from the Dominican Republic and came to the Dodgers initially through Fernando Tatis Sr.’s academy. He was converted from third base to catcher prior to signing with the Dodgers at age 17. His progress was rapid as he showed outstanding plate discipline for his age in the Dominican Summer League that year, came stateside in 2022, and then broke out with a 24 home run performance at Low-A in 2023, his age 19 season.
Liranzo posted outstanding walk rates from both sides of the plate in 2024, and took that to new heights after the trade, walking 22.6 percent of the time with the Whitecaps. He also cut his strikeout rate from 26.1 percent with the Dodgers down to 17.4 percent after the trade. Typically his left-handed stroke against right-handed pitching has been his power side, but in 2024 he was far better against lefties. There is still some swing and miss in his game, but his zone discipline is fantastic already and the power potential to all fields is undeniable.
Things were more balanced for him in Arizona in terms of splits and if we look back over multiple seasons that balance is to be expected. We also saw the head turning power from Liranzo, emphasized by this blast at the AFL All-Star Game below. Both his two homers in the Fall League came left-handed, and he posted a stellar 1.083 OPS hitting from that side of the plate. Happily, he posted a 1.511 OPS hitting right-handed, but remember that we’re talking about 11 total plate appearances against left-handed pitching and 48 plate appearances against right-handed pitching. He was already a good hitting prospect to begin with. We’ll just have to see how much of that second half rampage carries over into 2025 as he tackles the Double-A level.
Suffice it to say he was on fire most of the second half of the season, and shows discipline and power from both sides of the plate. There are still some modest swing and miss concerns, but he alleviated them by cutting his strikeout rate a lot after coming over to the Tigers.
Liranzo isn’t just a patient slugger with a grooved swing. He has the balance and barrel control to cover the whole plate. He’ll adjust and still drive some pitches at the bottom of the zone that he was initially fooled on, and when he’s on something he has the loft and raw power to hit a lot of home runs. Combine that with outstanding discipline, and you have a great recipe for future success.
The Fall League turned into a real showcase for both Liranzo and Josue Briceño, our fifth ranked Tigers prospect. The two young, power-hitting catchers spent their time in the desert hanging out together off the field and tearing apart older pitching competition on it.
Defensively, Liranzo has work to do, but nothing unusual for a catcher his age. He gets high praise for his game calling and leadership, and his pop times and arm strength are good. On the other hand, his blocking and framing will continue to need refinement. He appears to have the athleticism and mentality to improve and the Tigers are quite good at developing catchers so there is plenty of reason to be optimistic about Liranzo’s future behind the dish.
2025 Outlook
Liranzo spent all of the 2024 at the High-A level with both the Dodgers and the Tigers, so we expect him to start the season with the Double-A Erie SeaWolves. He is well prepared to have a good season at the plate as well as behind it. Expect him to spend most of the season there working hard on his defense and torching Eastern League pitching.
The bat is ahead of the curve, but there’s no point rushing it now. His work in 2024 says he’ll eventually be able to live up to manager A.J. Hinch’s high standards for his catchers. We’ll be interested to see how much time Liranzo gets in major league camp this spring. Presumably Hinch and his coaching staff are as excited to work with their next young catcher as anyone.
There’s a fair chance that the Tigers ultimately have an average or better defensive catcher here who walks a lot and hits 25-30 home runs a year. How much that future playing time is split between catcher and first base will be determined by his defensive development. His bat should carry him pretty far either way.