CHICAGO — The Detroit Tigers continue to search for an answer at third base.
For more than a year, the Tigers avoided playing Colt Keith at third base because of a labrum injury in his right shoulder suffered during his time in the minor leagues. The injury didn’t require surgery but limited his throwing arm, leading the Tigers to play him at second base in 2024 and first base in 2025.
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The Tigers are now willing to play Keith at third base, as he has received practice reps there recently. The 23-year-old is available to play third base — effective Wednesday, June 4. If all goes well, Keith could settle in as the primary third baseman, which would fill a gaping hole for the Tigers.
“We’re curious about how we can maximize this roster,” manager A.J. Hinch said before Wednesday’s game. “I don’t know that it will be something that is primary, or I don’t know that it’s something you’re going to see a lot of, but there are a lot of times during games — as we do use our whole roster — where being able to put him over there could be very advantageous.”
Keith suffered the shoulder injury June 9, 2022, in High-A West Michigan — diving back into first base while on the bases. He missed four months. He also tweaked the same shoulder during the 2023 and 2024 seasons, both while diving for a ball on defense, but he avoided the injured list.
He hasn’t played third base since Sept. 5, 2023, in Triple-A Toledo.
Keith made his MLB debut in 2024.
President of baseball operations Scott Harris — who signed Keith to a six-year, $28.6 million contract in January 2024 before Keith had made his MLB debut — moved Keith to second to “save a little bit of the load on his arm,” but he also said the Tigers weren’t “closing the door on third base at all.”
The door appears wide open in June 2025.
“Just giving him different looks on ground balls,” Hinch said. “He used to play third base a little bit, so it’s not that foreign to him. You may see him there from time to time. We’ll see.”
The Tigers have a logjam on the right side of the infield: The success of Spencer Torkelson at first base and Gleyber Torres at second leave the Tigers with no choice but to put Keith at designated hitter. That forces Kerry Carpenter — whom the Tigers would prefer at designated hitter to protect his health — to spend a majority of his time in right field, thus limiting opportunities for Wenceel Pérez and Justyn-Henry Malloy.
More importantly, the Tigers need improved offensive production at third base. Tigers third basemen rank 29th with a .545 OPS, with Zach McKinstry, Andy Ibáñez, Javier Báez and Jace Jung responsible for those results. (Tigers shortstops also rank 22nd in MLB, with a .622 OPS.)
Keith could be the solution at third, as he’s hitting .244 with four home runs, 22 walks and 41 strikeouts in 54 games, posting a .721 OPS. So far, he has started 18 games at second base, 17 games at designated hitter and 12 games at first base.
The bad news: Keith’s arm strength ranks in the 15th percentile among MLB players — only slightly better than Torres, whom the Tigers won’t even consider at third base.
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How soon could Keith play third base?
“Could see him tonight,” Hinch said before Wednesday’s game.
Is he ready?
“I don’t know if he’s ready or not,” Hinch said, “but if the game leads me that way, I’m going to put him there because of the situations that we’re trying to win games. In a perfect world, he gets a few more reps of practice, but I’m willing to do anything to try to put these guys in a good position.”
The Tigers aren’t worried about Keith’s shoulder, despite his injury history.
His shoulder is expected to hold up at the hot corner.
“The injuries have happened on dives,” Hinch said. “We can put him anywhere. He’s got more than enough arm strength. He’s done a ton of work. His maintenance program is incredible. The injuries are unassociated to what position he’s playing.”
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers open door for Colt Keith to play third base in 2025
