The last thing any organization wants is for its young baseball prospects to sustain an injury that impedes their growth.
The Detroit Tigers must play the waiting game with Kevin McGonigle.
MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported on Sunday that McGonigle would miss time due to an ankle issue. The scope is unknown, but Morosi stated that additional information will be released in the coming days.
McGonigle, 20, plays for West Michigan in the High-A league. He is the Tigers’ No. 3 overall prospect and the No. 27 prospect in all of baseball, according to MLB Pipeline.
McGonigle has just begun his second full professional season with a bang. In the Whitecaps’ season opener, he was 2-for-5 with two doubles and four RBI. He collaborated with two other key Tigers prospects, Max Clark and Josue Briceno, to help West Michigan win 7-0.
The Holland Sentinel covered the opening. McGonigle played the entire game and recorded the final out from his shortstop position. It made no mention of him being injured.
It’s tough to predict how much time he’ll miss until the severity of the injury is determined. Minor league teams keep a 7-day injured list and a 60-day IL. Given that the report implies he will be absent for long time, a move to at least 7 days appears plausible.
McGonigle was taken 37th overall in the 2023 Major League Baseball draft by the Tigers from Bonner & Prendergast Catholic High School in Alden, Pennsylvania. He was selected Pennsylvania Gatorade Player of the Year his senior year and represented the United States at the 2022 U-18 Baseball World Cup.
Detroit handed him a $2.85 million bonus to encourage him to abandon college. After a few games in 2023, he began his first full season with the Tigers’ organization in Class-A Lakeland and West Michigan. He hit.309/.401/.452 with five home runs and 44 RBIs. He also hit 16 doubles, four triples, stole 22 bases, and scored 49 runs.
As a young hitter, he possessed a particularly keen eye for the strike zone. He walked 46 times with 22 strikeouts.
While at Lakeland, he hit.326/.407/.470 with four home runs and 37 RBI. Despite being promoted to West Michigan, he was awarded the Florida State League’s most valuable player and the Tigers’ minor league player of the season.
