Tigers' Colt Keith has a new position and high expectations in Year 2

LAKELAND, Fla.

It was early November, nine days before Colt Keiths wedding, when he and his fiancee got a call.

Keiths truck, a Dodge Ram TRX, had been stolen.

The thieves smashed a window, hacked a key fob and drove off.

Keith filed the insurance claim.

Got married.

Then moved to Arizona from Mississippi to begin his offseason training in anticipation of his second year in the majors with the Detroit Tigers.

The days ticked by.

No sign of the truck.

Keith ordered a new one, this time a Ford Raptor.

More than a month later, they got another call.

The old truck had been found at a tow yard in New Orleans.

Thieves had taken Keiths wallet and some cash.

His custom TaylorMade golf clubs and his baseball gear were left inside, untouched.

The vehicle was returned.

Advertisement I ended up having two trucks, Keith said.

I just sold the old one.

The saga was stressful.

But marriage and a new truck were far from the only changes for Keith over the winter.

In late December, the day before the Tigers signed Gleyber Torres, president of baseball operations Scott Harris made a phone call.

Keith answered.

After more than a year of grinding to improve at second base and making real strides Keith learned the Tigers wanted to sign Torres.

Harris asked Keith about moving to first base.

I was like, Yeah,' Keith said.

Whatever helps get us back to the playoffs and makes us a better team, I was down to do.

Keiths first hurdle in the position change? He did not own a first basemans mitt.

Keith soon dived into the world of first basemen.

He watched video of players he admired.

He studied others he thought he could fashion himself after.

He soon ordered the same model Rawlings glove that Christian Walker uses.

Walker won three Gold Gloves with the Arizona Diamondbacks before signing a three-year deal with the Houston Astros this winter.

Pretty sure hes a good glove to have, Keith said, and help get me off on the right foot.

Keiths position change alters the complexion of the Tigers infield and will be one of the most important storylines in spring training.

Keith played third base for most of his time in the minors.

He was worth minus-8 defensive runs saved at second base last season but did improve significantly by years end.

Still, his physique always foreshadowed an eventual move to first.

And contrary to what some might think, first base is not a position where you can hide.

In the words of Tigers manager A.J.

Hinch, its importance is underrated defensively.

Even plus athletes can sometimes struggle with the intricacies and footwork of the position.

The Tigers expect there to be growing pains this spring times Keith ranges too far to his right or overstrides and lets an off-target throw get by.

They want to get those instances out of the way now.

Advertisement I think the biggest (challenge) is timing, Hinch said.

Obviously weve got to figure out his range.

Hes got to figure out how to maneuver around the base and then just be an athlete.

There are a ton of techniques that hes gonna work on, whether its balls in the dirt, whether its that guys dont throw perfect four-seams straight across the diamond, or the interaction with the runner.

Here is the video of Colt Keith at first base America has been waiting for pic.twitter.com/6UCwcY8wby Cody Stavenhagen (@CodyStavenhagen) February 15, 2025 There were more changes in Keiths professional life.

Already strong and chiseled, Keith was comfortable adding even more muscle with the move to first.

At the plate, the overall numbers from his rookie year dont quite do his season justice.

His start was brutal he hit .171 through his first 36 games.

But from May 17 on, he hit .286.

He adopted a toe-tap that helped his timing, and for much of the summer, his bat was scorching.

Still, Keith never quite got the most out of his power.

He had a tendency to get stuck on his back leg and fail to generate forward momentum in his swing.

This is one reason his average exit velocity of 87.8 mph ranked in the bottom quarter of MLB hitters.

Keith finished the season with 13 home runs, including only two from July 28 through the end of the season.

I had a really bad negative move in my load, Keith said.

That would cause me to be late, come in and out of the zone, rip the ball to the pull side.

It resulted in a lot of grounders to the right side and also flares to left field.

Keith called his lower-half mechanics all over last season.

As he looked to improve, he looked toward other major-league players for examples of what he wanted his swing to look like.

He settled on none other than Walker.

That meant less toe-tap and more of a subtle leg kick.

Advertisement He talks about his feels being coil and move forward, downhill toward the baseball, Keith said.

Thats kind of what Im going for right now.

I think my power will go up if Im moving forward.

Funny enough, Walker is a player who could have made sense for the Tigers in free agency.

Signing Walker, though, would have required at least a three-year commitment to a 34-year-old first baseman.

Because Walker received a qualifying offer, it also would have meant forfeiting a draft pick.

Those are among the reasons the Tigers instead chose to sign Torres, even when it meant moving Keith who signed a six-year, pre-debut contract extension last winter off second base.

Obviously Scott trusted in me, Keith said.

I trust Scott with the team.

Hes got that job for a reason.

I was just focused on myself, getting better with my swing, trying to correct the wrongs I made last year and get better.

Whether Keith really becomes a burgeoning Walker clone remains to be seen.

But his evolution is already in progress.

Keith spent his winter in Arizona, where he took groundballs with Tigers hitting coach Keith Beauregard.

Now in spring training, Keith is drilling first base with infield coach Joey Cora.

Keith will still take groundballs at second base later in camp, and Harris has said just because Keith is playing first base in 2025 doesnt guarantee hell be there forever.

Right now, though, first base is the main focus.

Theres a few habits I need to break, Keith said.

Like fielding the ball with two hands.

The first base is a one-hand dominant position.

Getting used to that.

Also getting used to how big the glove is.

And the footwork: Go, find the bag with your foot ...

OK, the throw is wide, so I can scoot this far, still be on the bag.

Stuff like that is tough.

But Im getting the hang of it pretty quick.

Advertisement No longer a rookie, Keith is also evolving behind closed doors.

Serious and driven, Keith kept to himself most of last season.

It was rare to see him goofing off with teammates or cutting up in the clubhouse.

But he partook in the postseason celebrations.

Hes developed a friendship with Tigers utilityman Zach McKinstry.

Hes slowly loosening up and showing more personality.

Ive seen him a couple times this winter, Hinch said.

Hes just a lot more comfortable in this entire environment now.

He has a lot more experience.

I think hes settled into this team.

If the Tigers want to again exceed expectations in 2025, they will depend on young players such as Keith to continue taking steps forward.

Theres real potential in his bat, and based on how he hit for much of the summer, it requires little imagination to see Keith outperforming the .261 average, .323 on-base percentage and 16 home runs FanGraphs is projecting.

So new truck, new position, altered mechanics and increased comfort.

Its quite the backdrop for Keiths second year in the big leagues.

(Photo: Junfu Han / USA Today Network).

This article has been shared from the original article on theathleticuk, here is the link to the original article.