ATLANTA – Max Clark is coming soon.
Right?
President of baseball operations Scott Harris has built the Detroit Tigers’ top-heavy farm system around a few position player prospects. The group is headlined by American League Rookie of the Year favorite Kevin McGonigle, though he wasn’t always the top-ranked prospect.
It used to be Clark.
While McGonigle is thriving with the Tigers, Clark – selected 34 picks before him in the 2023 draft, at No. 3 overall – has been continuing his development in Triple-A Toledo. He still seems projected for his MLB debut in 2026, but the Tigers aren’t making any promises.
“We’re not ready to bring him up right now,” Harris said Tuesday, April 28, during an MLB Network interview with studio host Brian Kenny. “He’s a really important part of our future. We took him first in my first draft, and then we took Kevin right behind him. Those remain two really important pieces for us moving forward.”
Clark, a left-handed hitter, has a .305 batting average with one home run, 13 walks and 14 strikeouts in 24 games at the Triple-A level, registering an .834 OPS. He has logged all 198⅓ innings in center field, where he has called home for his entire career in the minor leagues.
He hit .377 with a 1.010 OPS in his first 17 games.
Since then?
He is hitting .115 with a .361 OPS in his past seven games.
“His ceiling is one that can put pressure on the opposing team in all phases of the game,” Harris said. “He’s certainly performing well offensively – that’s a really big part. I think he’s going to hit for more power as he gets more comfortable with his swing and his strike-zone decision-making.
“We also want to see him continue to develop the other areas of his game. He can be an elite center fielder. We’re really focused on his jumps, his reads and getting off the ball quickly in center field. We also think he can put a lot of pressure on the opposing teams on the bases. We think there’s more he can get there, and we’re trying to stay focused on his leads, his fundamentals and his ability to read different types of pitchers and get a good jump.”
Clark advanced from High-A West Michigan to Double-A Erie in July 2025.
He ranks as the No. 8 prospect in baseball, according to MLB Pipeline – trailing Konnor Griffin (Pittsburgh Pirates), McGonigle (Tigers), Jesús Made (Milwaukee Brewers), Leo De Vries (Athletics), JJ Wetherholt (St. Louis Cardinals), Sebastian Walcott (Texas Rangers) and Colt Emerson (Seattle Mariners).
In 2026, Clark has found success and failure upon joining Triple-A Toledo coming out of his first MLB spring training. He struggled in Grapefruit League play during camp, going 0-for-13 at the plate in his final eight games and making multiple defensive miscues in left and center field.
“We’re focused on all those fundamentals and all phases of the game with Max,” Harris said. “He’s progressing really nicely, and we think he’s going to really help us.”
Eventually, Clark will make his MLB debut.
Should Tigers fans expect the promotion in 2026?
“I think there’s a really good chance that he ends up helping us, but it’s premature to actually forecast when that’s going to happen,” Harris said. “We just want to keep him focused where his feet are – and that’s in Toledo right now. We’ve got to keep getting better before we can have that conversation.”
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Scott Harris on Max Clark: ‘Premature to forecast’ MLB debut timeline
Reporting by Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
