Here is the second installment of The Detroit News’ final assessment of the Detroit Tigers’ 2024 season, grading position players.

In Wednesday’s edition, beat writer Chris McCosky assessed the final grades for the pitching staff. Today, it’s the young position player core.

Here are the final grades:

Catchers

• Jake Rogers, .197/.255/.352, 71 OPS-plus: His value to this baseball team so far exceeds his slash line, it almost renders it inconsequential. At age 29 and in only his fourth season, he quietly emerged as not only a leader in the clubhouse, but also the team’s emotional compass. He has an innate ability, either through his own goofiness or self-deprecating humor, to diffuse tension and keep everything and everyone around him calm and loose. And, not for nothing, he is a Gold Glove finalist behind the plate. Statcast grades him as a plus-12 in fielding run value, which puts him in the top 95 percentile in baseball. Nobody had a bigger impact on Tarik Skubal in-game than Rogers, who caught all of his starts. He was instrumental, too, in navigating a fleet of relievers through those bullpen games, not a simple task.

• Dillon Dingler, .167/.195/.310, 41 OPS-plus: Not much can be or should be taken from 87 plate appearances against big-league pitching. In the small sample, he got overwhelmed by high velocity which made him vulnerable to off-speed pitches and spin. Correctable. What showed plainly, though, was his ability to handle pitchers and control a game from behind the plate. The Tigers will likely add a veteran catcher to the spring training roster, but the expectation is that Dingler will be hard to keep off the Opening Day roster next season.

Infielders

• Spencer Torkelson, .219/.295/.374, 89 OPS-plus: He left broken in June and came back two-plus months later a whole lot better, on both sides of the ball. He hit .248 with a .781 OPS with six doubles, six homers and 19 RBIs from Aug. 17 on. There was never going to be enough time to fully salvage his season, but did he do enough to be given the first base job heading into camp? President Scott Harris didn’t indicate as much, saying only that this would be an important offseason for Torkelson and that he’d have to come to camp and earn the everyday spot. He is only 25 and nobody is giving up on him. But 1,469 plate appearances into his big-league career, it’s time for him to establish himself as a middle-of-the-order run producer.

• Colt Keith, .260/.309/.380, 96 OPS-plus: Simply put, he had the best rookie season of any Tigers position player since Nick Castellanos back in 2014, banging out 134 hits with 32 extra-base hits and 61 RBIs. He had 35 multi-hit games, tied for most among American League rookies. He admitted to wearing down some physically late in September and into the postseason. But that only manifested itself in his power numbers. He had just four extra-base hits, one homer, after Aug. 24. His most impressive feat, though, might’ve been his growth at second base. He improved his range and especially his pivots on double-play balls.

• Javier Báez, .184/.221/.294, 46 OPS-plus: He’d played through hip and back pain for two seasons before finally shutting it down in August and having arthroscopic surgery to repair his damaged hip. And watching him use an elaborate cane to walk out for the team picture in September told you everything you needed to know about the severity of the injury and seriousness of the surgery. There are three years and $73 million left on his contract. Harris said he expects Báez to be ready to participate next spring, though he was less sure if he’d be able to start the season on time. Bottom line, there is a role for Báez in 2025, though it might be as a right-handed platoon player off the bench.

Mid-term grade: D-plus

Final grade: D

• Trey Sweeney, .218/.269/.373, 81 OPS-plus: He was a revelation. Acquired from the Dodgers in the Jack Flaherty trade, he made his big-league debut on Aug. 16 and never relinquished the everyday shortstop role the rest of the way. The quiet Kentuckian was as steady as they come defensively, making four errors in 145 chances and was worth three defensive runs saved in just 36 games. His left-handed bat showed some pop (91.3 average exit velocity) but pitchers in the short sample (119 plate appearances) exploited his weaknesses, especially with off-speed pitches and spin located down and away from him.

Mid-term grade: N/A

Final grade: C-plus

• Jace Jung, .241/.362/.304, 93 OPS-plus: Every team needs a junkyard dog and this is the Tigers’ version. He will scrap and he will fight and whatever he lacks in natural athleticism, he makes up for with an indomitable will to succeed. He’s still raw defensively and he probably needs another couple hundred at-bats in Triple-A, as evidenced by his 31% strikeout rate in 94 plate appearances. Also, he hit just .190 with a 34.5% strikeout rate against four-seam fastballs. But the makeup is real, and his 16% walk rate and .362 on-base average are encouraging.

Mid-term grade: N/A

Final grade: Inc.

• Ryan Kreidler, .119/.200/.169, 7 OPS-plus: He still has minor-league options left, so he is likely to be back in camp next spring and, depending on the health and performance of Báez, could be valuable as right-handed hitting depth at shortstop. He only played in 35 games this season and, for the third straight season, struggled to find his footing against big-league pitching in short doses (65 plate appearances). He’s a better hitter than he’s been able to display to this point. With Sweeney in the fold and with some highly touted infield prospects coming soon, Kreidler’s window is closing.

Mid-term grade: Inc.

Final grade: Inc.

• Bligh Madris, .269/.324/.358, 95 OPS-plus: He’s going to be 29 in February and might not be in the Tigers’ plans for 2025. But in his short 21-game, 75-plate appearance stint, he was a useful, left-handed hitting plug-in at first base while Torkelson was in Toledo. His reward for sticking out most of the season in Toledo was a spot on the postseason taxi squad. He was summoned to Cleveland before Game 5 as insurance in case Kerry Carpenter couldn’t play.

Mid-term grade: N/A

Final grade: Inc.

Utility players

• Matt Vierling, .257/.312/.423, 107 OPS-plus: Somehow his 2.9 WAR doesn’t fully cover his immense value to this team. With his positional versatility, his grit, his aggressive style of play, his knack for big hits in big moments and his always positive and professional presence in the clubhouse, he was the embodiment of the Tigers’ personality. He also, without ever talking about it or using it as an excuse, played through multiple nagging bumps and bruises, which likely facilitated his faltering offensive production in September and October (.237 in September, 4-for-28 with 14 strikeouts in the postseason). He just turned 28 years old. His best baseball is still ahead of him.

Mid-term grade: B

Final grade: B

• Zach McKinstry, .215/.277/.337, 74 OPS-plus: If you are looking for catalysts of the Tigers’ late-season push, don’t overlook McKinstry. From Aug. 13 on, McKinstry hit .276 with a .736 OPS, scored 11 runs and stole seven bases (he was 16-for-16 on the season). He was 3-for-7 with a homer in the postseason, too. His speed and positional versatility certainly fit the team’s DNA. Still, his role in 2025 is a question. He’s 29, out of options and arbitration eligible. He wouldn’t be expensive to retain ($1.3 million estimated arbitration value). But if the team signs or trades for a regular infielder, be it right-handed or left-handed, he could be expendable.

Mid-term grade: C

Final grade: C-plus

• Andy Ibáñez, .241/.295/.357, 85 OPS-plus: He was the team’s lefty slayer off the bench, slashing .292/.357/.445 against left-handed pitching. But his production fell off dramatically in the second half of the season (.174/.248/.239). He’ll be 32 in April and is arbitration eligible. He filled such a vital role in AJ Hinch’s matchup game, but if the Tigers upgrade the roster with one or two everyday players, you wonder if Ibáñez, being as one-dimensional as he is, would become extraneous. Tough decisions loom.

Mid-term grade: B

Final grade: C-plus

Outfielders

• Riley Greene, .262/.348/.479, 133 OPS-plus: An All Star in his age-23 season and yet it still feels like he’s not even close to reaching his full potential. That bountiful upside is what’s so exciting about Greene’s robust talent and quest for greatness. For most of the season, opposing managers structured their bullpens around his late-game at-bats. He was the guy in the lineup they wouldn’t let beat them. And still he found a way to be productive. A hamstring strain interrupted his second half and he struggled in August. But in crunch time in September, he stepped up (.343 on-base, .837 OPS, four doubles, five homers, 18 RBIs, 15 runs scored). He was a plus-14 runs defensive saved in left field and was one of the Tigers’ best hitters in the ALDS (5-for-17 with three walks).

Mid-term grade: B-plus

Final grade: B

• Parker Meadows, .244/.310/.433, 109 OPS-plus: If he wasn’t stealing home runs in the outfield, he was swatting two-strike, two-out game-winning hits and homers. He was at the center of just about every dramatic win the Tigers had down the stretch, the pinnacle being his ninth-inning grand slam in San Diego. Here’s all you need to know about his impact: The Tigers were 54-28 with him in the lineup. He had an OPS-plus of 50 when he was sent to Toledo in April. He finished with an OPS-plus of 109 after slashing .296/.340/.500 in the final 47 games. He had a productive postseason, too (7-for-26, two doubles and a homer). One of the joys of this season was seeing him blossom after struggling so badly in April.

Mid-term grade: D-plus

Final grade: B-plus

• Kerry Carpenter, .284/.345/.587, 159 OPS-plus: The Cleveland series was his season in a capsule. Stunning three-run homer off closer Emmanuel Clase to win Game 2 and then he tweaked his hamstring scoring a run in Game 4, leaving him hobbled for the elimination game. His season, again, was broken by injury (lumbar stress fracture). He played little more than half a year (87 games), yet he still produced 18 homers and 57 RBIs. Between the injuries and not being able to establish himself against left-handed pitching (3-for-28 in a tiny sample), Carpenter remains one of the most potent part-time players in the game. For the Tigers to level up, they need 120-plus games and 600 at-bats from him.

Mid-term grade: B

Final grade: B-minus

• Wenceel Pérez, .242/.300/.383, 93 OPS-plus: If we were giving grades solely on preseason expectations, this switch-hitting rookie would get A’s across the board. Because there were none. In a season of surprises, Pérez was among the most pleasant. The switch-hitting component was useful in Hinch’s lineup constructions, even though Pérez was more productive from the left side (.251 average, .709 OPS) than from the right (.209, .594). He was an aggressive presence on the bases and grew into a competent right fielder, though with a dangerous penchant for near collisions. As most young players do their first run through the league, he sagged in the second half (.198/.268/.353) but he went 5-for-20 in the postseason.

Mid-term grade: B-minus

Final grade: C

• Justyn-Henry Malloy, .203/.291/.366, 86 OPS-plus: His value was against left-handed pitching (.393 on-base, .500 slugging, .893 OPS). But he needs to do more than that to maintain his roster spot in 2025. He will be 25 in February and the Tigers don’t want him to be a full-time DH. He never fully earned the coaching staff’s trust in the outfield last season. His 10% walk rate is useful but the 37% strikeout rate is untenable. The Tigers have a need for right-handed power bats and Malloy has the talent to fill that role. This offseason will be critical for him.

Mid-term grade: C

Final grade: C-minus

• Akil Baddoo, .137/.220/.301, 47 OPS-plus: Once Greene, Meadows and Carpenter got healthy, Baddoo had no role. Though he helped trigger the late-season surge with a walk-off double to beat Seattle on Aug. 14, he played in just five games in the second half. He’s 26 years old and arbitration eligible. Even though the Tigers would like to keep in the organization, there’s better than a 50-50 chance they non-tender him.

Mid-term grade: D

Final grade: D