Despite Gleyber Torres' defensive woes in Yankees stint, Tigers president remains upbeat 

Gleyber Torres has had a solid start to his career with the Detroit Tigers. The former New York Yankees star has been one of the key figures leading their offense, having notched up 24 RBIs in just 30 games and batting at a team-high average of .299.

Torres' offense has never been a major cause for concern. He has produced decent numbers throughout his career in the Bronx. He had a .265 batting average with the Yankees in his seven years with the club. But it was his defensive efforts at second base in 2024 that led to the team not wanting to continue his services for this season.

Torres had a -5 run value in the infield while carrying a -4 Outs Above Average in 2024. He made some glaring errors in the middle of the diamond. He wasn't offered a qualifying offer by New York and instead signed a $15 million one-year deal with the Tigers who gambled on him despite his poor defensive metrics.

Detroit Tigers President of Baseball Operations Scott Harris explained the decision on the latest episode of "The Show". He said they plan to rotate him alongside Colt Keith and Spencer Torkelson in the infield/DH role and also work deeply on his defensive weaknesses.

"...Gleyber's played the majority of second base, but Colt [Keith] has played some second base, Colt has played some first base, and then Torke [Spencer Torkelson] has played some first base and DH. It's really important for us to be able to add bats into our lineup, and the versatility of Colt allows us to do that," Harris said.

"Defensively, with Gleyber, he's been working really hard with Joey Cora. We think Joey Cora is one of the better infield guys in the game. The two things for us are positioning and execution with him. We're trying to work on the positioning. We've been working on the execution.

"By and large, he's been pretty good. There have been a couple negative plays that are sinking his overall performance across a small sample, but he's making the plays we need him to make, and he's been a significant boost at the top of our lineup," he added.

(from 30:00 mark onwards)

MLB analyst points out key behind Gleyber Torres' success

Gleyber Torres' move to the top of the batting order since August of last year has worked out well for him and the teams he has represented.

With the Tigers, however, his production has gone up a level because of a better trigger-and-coil movement that has helped him generate more power. This was broken down by MLB analyst Mark DeRosa on MLB Network's broadcast Tuesday.

"You talk about rhythm and timing. He’s a rhythm and timing type guy. He’s got a little dance step I didn’t notice when he was with the Yankees... It’s a thing," DeRosa said.

"There’s no denying it. It’s not something we heard when I was coming up, but it’s a thing — getting into that back hip. He is fully engaged. Kickstand. Pause. Bottom hand goes directly to the baseball. Top hand is your power. Deliver a blow," he added.

(from 3:10 mark onwards)

If Torres continues to play this well, he could see himself earning an All-Star cap, something that would surely sting the Yankees.