On June 18, 2022, Riley Greene made his major league debut for the Detroit Tigers against the Texas Rangers and in his first at bat he recorded his first MLB hit. Since that hit, he has been showcasing his talents all over the league.
Greene, in just over a week, is another Hagerty High School product out of Orlando, Florida to be honored with our MLB Rookie of the Week award. The previous was Atlanta Braves rookie infielder Vaughn Grissom.
Like Grissom, Greene was also drafted in the 2019 June amateur draft, as Greene was the Tigers first round pick (5th overall) and in just three seasons in the minors he compiled a .291 batting average, with 139 runs, 37 doubles, 11 triples, 30 Home runs, 120 RBIs, 92 walks and 25 stolen bases.
No matter what level the Tigers sent him to, from Rookie Ball to Triple A, he kept hitting and in just three seasons in the minors, the outfielder was already in the majors. The same path his former high school teammate took, both great products to come out Orlando, Florida, which is a good testament to the Hagerty baseball program and Coach Mike Sindone.
The Detroit Tigers fans have not had much to root for this year as they are mired at the bottom of the AL Central Division, but Greene is showcasing such skills that should bring fans back to the stands again.
In his MLB debut, he finished 2 for 3, with two runs and two walks through 10 games played in June, and he hit safely in 7 of the 10, with three multi-hit games. In July, he kept putting the ball in play and hit safely in 20 of 27 games, with seven multi-hit games and also recorded his first major league homer on July 2nd and his second on July 15th.
In August, the 21 year old hit safely in 25 of 28 games played, with 10 multi-hit games, and showcased his power stroke, as he launched three more homers to give him five so far on the season.
After recording three straight games without a hit from August 16th to August 19th, Greene has been on a tear, as currently he is on a 7 game hitting streak spanning back to August 20th. In the past seven days from August 22nd to August 28th, he is batting 10 for 23 (.434), with four-multi hit games, a double, triple, home run, and four RBIs.
Up until Greene’s current hitting streak, the Tigers were 4-14 for the month of August, but since it started they are 5-2, after taking two out of three from the Los Angeles Angels, splitting a two game series with the San Francisco Giants and taking two out of three from the Texas Rangers.
Its been seven years since the Detroit Tigers have made the playoffs and six since they finished above .500 for a season. But just maybe they have found a diamond in the rough that they can build a winning team around. Not pinning Riley Greene as a savior to the organization, but just as his Hagerty High School teammate Grissom has sparked the Braves, Greene has the talent to spark the Tigers to winning seasons.
For now the Rookie is enjoying a breakout season and we look forward to years to come as he continues to grow into a formidable MLB centerfielder.
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