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Detroit Tigers manager AJ Hinch and president of baseball operations Scott Harris have found an admirer in top prospect Max Clark, who believes the two to be the reasons for the Tigers' early success in 2025.
The Tigers are the best team in the American League, possessing a 33-17 record. They are 7-3 in their past 10 games. While at Comerica Park, they have simply dominated (17-5), even in away games, they have a winning record (16-12).
On "The Call Up Podcast," Clark, who was picked third overall in the 2023 MLB draft, spoke about the winning mindset within the top minds of the organization.
"When you have guys like Scott Harris and A.J. Hinch that just push winning throughout our entire organization — I mean, we had competitions going on in spring training on the backfields where winning actually mattered," Clark said. "We had coaches getting into it, managers getting into it. The organizational shift and mindset has been unbelievable.
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"Our organization is as talented as ever. We’re led by two of the best and most winning people I’ve ever met."
Max Clark in admiration of AJ Hinch
The first reason Max Clark cited for the Tigers’ success is A.J. Hinch’s player-first, winning-focused management style.
"Spending time with A.J. in the spring—it’s unbelievable," Clark said. "That guy cares about his players, he cares about winning, and everybody loves him. Everybody respects him because that guy knows how to win. He has won, and he’s going to continue to do so."
Hinch's postseason success during his time with the Houston Astros, where he won a World Series, has come to fruition for the Tigers, who didn't play a postseason game until last season since 2014.
Max Clark likes what Scott Harris has done for the Tigers
Max Clark also spoke highly of Tigers president Scott Harris, who has turned the program around from the bottom of the AL Central.
"Then you have a guy like Scott, who’s so involved—dominating the strike zone, dominating both sides of the ball," Clark added. "That’s what it takes to ultimately win games. That’s what they care about."
Scott Harris was part of the Chicago Cubs executive team when they won the World Series in 2016. He was promoted to the post of Assistant General Manager in 2018, but he left the job to become the GM of the San Francisco Giants after the 2019 season.
In September 2022, the Tigers fired Al Avila and hired Harris as their new president of baseball operations. The improvement was there for everyone to see. The Tigers went 78-84 in 2023 and turned it around completely with an 86-76 record, making the postseason for the first time in a decade.
