Detroit Tigers 2019 home run leader is off to Japan

Brandon Dixon is off to Japan after spending the last two seasons with the Detroit Tigers.

After leading the Detroit Tigers in home runs during the 2019 season, Brandon Dixon found limited major league opportunities in 2020. Now placed on unconditional release waivers, Dixon will pursue an opportunity to spend the 2021 season finding his footing again by playing professionally in Japan.

Per Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press, Dixon will be joining the Rakuten Golden Eagles of the NPB. The Golden Eagles have yet to officially announce the move.

A former third-round pick of the Los Angeles Dodgers out of the University of Arizona in 2013, Dixon made his major league debut in 2018 with the Cincinnati Reds, slashing .178/.218/.356 with five home runs in 74 games.

His time with the Reds was short-lived, finding his way to Detroit after the 2018 season after being placed on waivers.

In 117 games with the Detroit Tigers in 2019, Dixon hit a team-leading 15 home runs with 20 doubles and a .248/.290/.435 slash line. A true super-utility player, Dixon appeared at every position on the diamond except for catcher and shortstop, even pitching in two games for the Tigers (also pitched in two games for the Reds in 2018).

He spent the majority of the 2020 season at Detroit’s Alternate Site, going 1-13 with a double and two RBI in just five games at the major league level.

Dixon will now take his defensive versatility and home run ability to Japan, a move that more and more former major leaguers seem to be taking as they look to resurrect their pro careers, and pocket more lucrative contracts than those available to them stateside.

For the Detroit Tigers, releasing Dixon opened an additional spot on the 40-man roster just ahead of Friday’s deadline to protect Rule 5 draft-eligible minor leaguers.

With four spots available, the Tigers were able to protect four of their top pitching prospects, including Matt Manning, Alex Faedo, Alex Lange, and Joey Wentz.

Entering his age-29 season, if Dixon can find early success in the NPB, there’s certainly an opportunity that he could return to the major leagues, especially with the likely return of the DH in the National League in the near future.

For now, Dixon leaves Major League Baseball with 196 games under his belt across his three-year career, including a .228 batting average, .271 OBP, 20 home runs, 64 RBI, and 27 doubles.