Detroit Tigers: Jeimer Candelario can be a bright spot going forward

The Detroit Tigers appear to have their third baseman of the future in Jeimer Candelario.

Last summer, the Detroit Tigers traded many of their veteran players and began looking towards the future. One of the young players that the Tigers were able to acquire was switch-hitting third baseman, Jeimer Candelario.

Through 27 games with the Tigers, Candelario slashed an impressive .330/.406/.468 with a pair of home runs. When including the time he spent with the Chicago Cubs prior to the trade, Candelario batted a still-very-respectable .283/.359/.425 on the year. He also hit one home run during his time with the Cubs as well.

Entering the 2017 season, Candelario was ranked as the Cubs’ seventh-best prospect by Baseball America. For multiple years now, he has hit for solid average and double-digit power in the minor leagues.

In 2015, Candelario batted a combined .277/.339/.431 with 10 home runs and 64 RBI with Class A Advanced Myrtle Beach and Double-A Tennessee. The following year, he split time between Double-A Tennessee and Triple-A Iowa and slashed .286/.380/.469 with 13 home runs and 77 RBI. This past season, he hit a combined .265/.343/.484 with 15 homers and 71 RBI with the Tigers’ and Cubs’ Triple-A clubs.

Going into 2018, it certainly appears that Candelario will be given a chance to prove he can stick as the Tigers’ third baseman. Nicholas Castellanos, who had played third base since 2014, began seeing time in right field at the end of last season.

The question of how Candelario will perform over the course of a full season remains to be seen. Obviously, it would stand to reason that his .330 batting average may not be sustainable. It may also be worth pointing out that he had a very lofty .392 BABIP with the Detroit Tigers.