The Detroit Tigers were able to acquire shortstop Trey Sweeney from the Los Angeles Dodgers last season in the trade that sent starting pitcher Jack Flaherty to the Dodgers for a two-month rental. Over a year later, it doesn't appear that the prospect is living up to the standard.
Since acquiring the 25-year-old in the deal, Detroit was able to re-sign Jack Flaherty back to the team last offseason. Los Angeles won the 2024 World Series and never looked back from the 2021 first-round pick.
Sweeney has seen some big league action with the Tigers, but his inconsistency at the plate has raised concerns in Detroit. Colin Keane of Motor City Bengals has predicted the infielder could be traded out of the Motor City soon.
"Detroit’s farm system is loaded with high-end talent in the infield, with studs like Hao-Yu Lee knocking on the door and the franchise's No. 1 prospect, Kevin McGonigle, soon to follow. In other words, the Tigers will soon have multiple in-house upgrades to Sweeney. That doesn’t mean Sweeney’s trade value in the eyes of other clubs is dead, though. He’s still just 25 years old and was a first-round pick for a reason. There’s still time for Sweeney to unlock things in the batter’s box, and there are teams out there who will think they can provide the key," the Tigers insider said.
Trey Sweeney's had multiple opportunities to make a name for himself in the MLB. Making his big league debut in 2024, he played in 36 games last season, finishing with a .218 batting average, .269 on-base percentage, .373 slugging percentage, and a .642 OPS while hitting four home runs and 17 RBI.
Getting another shot in 2025, the shortstop had a less productive outing. Through 87 games this season, Sweeney has stats of a .209 batting average, .276 on-base percentage, .279 on-base percentage, .303 slugging percentage, and a .582 OPS while hitting five home runs and 27 RBI.
A mix of inconsistent at-bats and a farming system that has multiple top players at the same position, Trey Sweeney could be on his way to another team.