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Spencer Torkelson

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Spencer Torkelson
Torkelson with the Toledo Mud Hens in 2021
Detroit Tigers – No. 20
First baseman / Third baseman
Born: (1999-08-26) August 26, 1999 (age 25)
Petaluma, California, U.S.
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
MLB debut
April 8, 2022, for the Detroit Tigers
MLB statistics
(through 2024 season)
Batting average.221
Home runs49
Runs batted in159
Teams

Spencer Enochs Torkelson (born August 26, 1999) is an American baseball first baseman for the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Torkelson was selected first overall by the Tigers in the 2020 Major League Baseball draft.

Amateur career

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Torkelson attended Casa Grande High School in Petaluma, California, where he played baseball, football and basketball.[1] During his high school baseball career, he batted .430 with 11 home runs and 99 runs batted in (RBIs). He committed to Arizona State University (ASU) to play college baseball for the Arizona State Sun Devils.[2]

Torkelson with Arizona State in 2019

As a freshman at Arizona State, Torkelson batted .320/.440/.743 with 25 home runs and 53 RBIs over 55 games. The 25 home runs led the nation, set a Pac-12 Conference record for home runs by a freshman, and also broke Barry Bonds' school record for home runs by a freshman.[3][4][5] He was named the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Freshman of the Year, National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association National Freshman Hitter of the Year and the Pac-12 Freshman of the Year.[6][7] After the season, he played for the United States collegiate national team.[8] As a sophomore, Torkelson joined Bob Horner as the only Arizona State players to hit 20 home runs for consecutive seasons.[9] In 2019, Baseball America ranked Torkelson as the No. 1 college prospect in the 2020 draft.[10] After the 2018 and 2019 seasons, he played collegiate summer baseball for the Chatham Anglers of the Cape Cod Baseball League.[11][12] As a junior, Torkelson hit six home runs in a COVID-19 shortened season, giving him 53 for his ASU career, three shy of ASU's career record.[13]

Professional career

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Minor leagues

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The Detroit Tigers selected Torkelson with the first overall pick in the 2020 Major League Baseball draft.[14] On June 30, 2020, he signed with the Tigers for $8,416,300, at that time the highest signing bonus in MLB draft history. The same day, he was added to the Tigers' 60-man player pool.[15]

To begin the 2021 season, Torkelson was assigned to the West Michigan Whitecaps of the High-A Central.[16] After slashing .312/.440/.569 with five home runs and 28 RBIs over 31 games, he was promoted to the Erie SeaWolves of the Double-A Northeast in mid-June.[17] That same month, he was selected to play in the All-Star Futures Game.[18] Over fifty games with Erie, he batted .263 with 14 home runs and 36 RBIs.[19] On August 15, he was promoted to the Toledo Mud Hens of Triple-A East, where finished the season and hit .238/.350/.481 with 11 home runs and 27 RBIs over 40 games.[20][21] After the Triple-A season ended, he joined the Salt River Rafters of the Arizona Fall League.[21]

Detroit Tigers

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On April 2, 2022, the Tigers announced that Torkelson had made their Opening Day roster.[22] His first major league hit was a double off Boston Red Sox pitcher Rich Hill on April 12.[23] He hit his first major league home run off Red Sox pitcher Austin Davis on April 13.[24] On July 17, the Tigers optioned Torkelson to Triple-A Toledo. At the time of the demotion, he was hitting .199 with 5 home runs.[25] Torkelson returned to the Tigers as a September call-up, and finished the 2022 season with a batting average of .203, with 8 home runs.

In the 2023 season, Torkelson hit .233 while leading the Tigers in home runs (31), RBI (94) and extra-base hits (66). He became the seventh Tigers player to hit 20 or more home runs in his age-23 season, joining Travis Fryman, Hank Greenberg, Willie Horton, Matt Nokes, Jason Thompson and Rudy York. He is the first Tiger to hit 30 homers since Miguel Cabrera and Justin Upton both reached the mark in 2016. Also, on July 18, 2023, at Kansas City he became the first Tigers player age 23-or-younger to have three or more extra-base hits and 10 or more total bases in a game since Nick Castellanos on August 19, 2015, at Chicago (NL).

After struggling for the first two months of the 2024 season, Torkelson was again optioned to Triple-A Toledo on June 3. At the time of the demotion, he was hitting .201 with 4 home runs.[26]

The Tigers ended up clinching a Wild Card spot with Torkelson as Detroit's starting first baseman. Torkelson started the postseason 0-14 at the plate with nine strikeouts and three walks. On October 9, in Game 3 of the 2024 American League Division Series against the Cleveland Guardians, Torkelson recorded his first postseason hit — an RBI double in the sixth inning to put the Tigers up 3-0. That proved to be the final score, as Detroit took a 2-1 lead in the series.[27]

References

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  1. ^ Benefield, Kerry (July 25, 2016). "Benefield: Casa Grande star adding basketball to sports resume". The Press Democrat. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  2. ^ Jackson, John (November 16, 2016). "Casa infielders Torkelson, Smith choose colleges". Argus-Courier. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  3. ^ "ASU slugger Spencer Torkelson is ready for encore after record-setting freshman season". AZFamily. February 27, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  4. ^ Jacquez, Joe (May 5, 2018). "Spencer Torkelson sets new Pac-12 freshman home run record". The State Press. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  5. ^ "Torkelson breaks Bonds' record". Argus-Courier. March 30, 2018. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  6. ^ Metcalfe, Jeff (May 31, 2018). "ASU's Spencer Torkelson named Pac-12 baseball Freshman of the Year". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  7. ^ "Early raves for ASU's Torkelson". Argus-Courier. January 23, 2019. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  8. ^ "Spencer Torkelson Named to USA Baseball Collegiate National Team". USA Baseball. April 27, 2018. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  9. ^ Metcalfe, Jeff (May 17, 2019). "Cal baseball edges No. 25 ASU, series finale cancelled". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved May 19, 2019.
  10. ^ Hippel, Hunter (August 6, 2019). "Baseball America ranks ASU's Torkelson as college's best 2020 prospect". Arizona Sports 98.7FM.
  11. ^ "#20 Spencer Torkelson". Pointstreak. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
  12. ^ "Spencer Torkelson". Pointstreak. Retrieved May 6, 2020.
  13. ^ Nightengale, Bob (March 23, 2020). "At Arizona State, a dream season shattered and uncertainty for potential No. 1 MLB pick Spencer Torkelson". USA Today. Retrieved April 1, 2020.
  14. ^ Beck, Jason (June 11, 2020). "No. 1 pick Torkelson's got the power, will to win". MLB.com. Retrieved June 17, 2020.
  15. ^ Beck, Jason (June 30, 2020). "Tigers, top pick Torkelson agree to deal". MLB.com. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
  16. ^ "Spencer Torkelson on West Michigan Whitecaps' Opening Day roster". MLive.com. April 29, 2021. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  17. ^ Beck, Jason (June 13, 2021). "Torkelson, Dingler earn Double-A promotion". MLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  18. ^ Callis, Jim (June 30, 2021). "Futures Game rosters are STACKED". MLB.com. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
  19. ^ "Detroit Tigers' top prospect Spencer Torkelson has mind-blowing day in Erie". August 13, 2021.
  20. ^ Beck, Jason (August 15, 2021). "1 step closer: Torkelson, Greene to Triple-A". MLB.com. Retrieved October 20, 2021.
  21. ^ a b "No rest for Torkelson as Casa Grande graduate sets his sights on MLB". Argus-Courier. October 19, 2021. Retrieved October 20, 2021.
  22. ^ Zencka, TC (April 2, 2022). "Spencer Torkelson Makes Tigers Opening Day Roster". mlbtraderumors.com. Retrieved April 2, 2022.
  23. ^ Beck, Jason (April 12, 2022). "Torkelson tallies his first Major League hit". MLB.com. Retrieved April 12, 2022.
  24. ^ Snyder, Matt; Axisa, Mike (April 13, 2022). "Tigers rookie Spencer Torkelson hits first career MLB home run at Comerica Park". CBSSports.com. Retrieved April 13, 2022.
  25. ^ Day, Brandon (July 17, 2022). "Spencer Torkelson optioned to Triple-A Toledo". Retrieved July 20, 2022.
  26. ^ Polishuk, Mark (June 2, 2024). "Tigers To Option Spencer Torkelson To Triple-A". MLB Trade Rumors. Retrieved June 4, 2024.
  27. ^ https://www.detroitnews.com/story/sports/mlb/tigers/2024/10/09/stay-in-the-fight-torkelson-ends-october-skid-as-tigers-inch-toward-another-clinch/75582503007/
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