Thayron Liranzo may have only got one at-bat in the Arizona Fall League All-Star Game, but he made it count. His 437-foot solo blast in the ninth inning broke a 5-5 tie and proved to be the game-winner as the American League won the game 6-5 on Nov. 9. The Tigers sixth overall prospect became the first player in franchise history and the third Dominican prospect to take home AFL MVP honors.
Come for the massive power. Stay for the bat flip. 😤@tigers No. 6 prospect Thayron Liranzo CRUSHES a go-ahead homer 437 ft, 112 mph in the 9th inning of the Fall Stars Game: pic.twitter.com/ZRccSnOYaZ
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) November 10, 2024
A 2021 international free agent signing by the Dodgers, Thayron Liranzo broke out in 2023 posting a .962 with 24 home runs in just 94 games at Single-A Rancho Cucamonga. The remarkable performance at just 19 years old firmly put the switch-hitting catcher on the prospect map, and he entered the 2024 season as MLB.com’s 70th-ranked prospect. However, Liranzo struggled to the tune of a .700 OPS in his first taste of High-A, causing him to fall out of the prospect rankings entirely and be viewed as expendable for a Dodgers team that had catching depth at both the major and minor league level. As a result, Liranzo became the headliner of a prospect package given to the Tigers at the trade deadline in exchange for ace Jack Flaherty.
The change of scenery appeared to rejuvenate Liranzo, as he posted a .315/.470/.562 with seven longballs in 26 games with the West Michigan Whitecaps. He has kept on hitting right into the Arizona Fall League, turning in a .326 batting average and walking 11 times against just nine strikeouts. Just about the only thing he hasn’t hit for power, but he proved he still has that tool in the box with his mammoth blast on Saturday. With a dominant second half and AFL stint, Thayron Liranzo looks like a sure bet to re-enter the top 100 prospects before 2025.
WBN Arizona Fall League: https://worldbaseball.com/league/arizona-fall-league/
