Dillon Dingler Keeps Getting Better
There was a time not too way back the place Dillon Dingler appeared to be on observe to be a backup catcher. That’d have been a superbly superb profession, however it now appears he’s a lot greater than that, which is nice for him and the Tigers.
Dingler was a second-round choose of the Tigers in 2020. For most of his time within the minors, the e book on him was that he had a terrific defensive ability set however his ceiling can be capped by a propensity for swinging and lacking.
In 2022, Dingler spent all the yr at Double-A. He hit 14 house runs in 448 plate appearances and drew walks at a stable 10% clip, however his 31.9% strikeout fee was far too excessive excessive. For reference, the MLB common was 22.2% final yr. The highest certified hitter was Ryan McMahon at 32.3%. Players usually strike out extra as they climb the minor league ladder and face harder competitors. With Dingler already whiffing at a excessive fee in Double-A, it might be pure to anticipate his charges to extend as he obtained to Triple-A after which the majors.
That season dimmed his inventory a bit. Baseball America had him because the No. 4 prospect within the Tigers’ system going into 2022 however bumped him to No. 7 forward of the 2023 season. Going into 2022, FanGraphs had Dingler at No. 4 within the system and even slotted him in as the game’s No. 108 prospect. Tthe following yr, Dingler was off the Top 100, dropped to No. 7 in the system, and given a forty five FV (future worth) on the 20-80 scale. The May 2024 scouting report from FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen supplies a superb snapshot of how Dingler was considered at the moment:
“The athleticism and receiving to be a do-it-all defender behind the dish is here, and much of Dingler’s prospect variance is tied to whether his hit tool and medium-sized frame will enable him to be a primary catcher or just a luxury backup. He swings through a ton of in-zone fastballs and really struggles to get on top of anything in the upper third of the zone. There aren’t many catchers capable of punishing mistakes with power the way Dingler does, but his bat-to-ball ability is also comfortably worse than the typical hitter at that position. He shares quite a few similarities with Jake Rogers and should end up playing a lot, producing about 1.5 annual WAR in a low-end primary catching role.”
The 2023 season didn’t enhance the best way he was considered. Injuries restricted him to 89 video games, together with 26 on the Triple-A degree. He punched out in 31.2% of his plate appearances and put up an unpleasant .202/.266/.384 line. Going into 2024, the Tigers gave him a 40-man spot to maintain him out of the Rule 5 draft, however BA knocked him all the way down to No. 9 within the Detroit system. FanGraphs bumped him all the way down to No. 10 and dropped his FV to 40+ (once more, on the 20-80 scale).
Dingler’s 2024 was one thing of a blended bag. His outcomes on the Triple-A degree had been very encouraging. He took 301 journeys to the plate and trimmed his strikeout fee to twenty.3% — a large enchancment. His 10% stroll fee was nonetheless good, and he hit 17 house runs. His .308/.379/.559 line translated to a 145 wRC+. That obtained some assist from a .337 batting common on balls in play, however there have been a whole lot of good indicators regardless.
However, Dingler additionally obtained his first style of the majors and delivered extra worrisome outcomes. It was a small pattern dimension of 87 plate appearances, however his 34.5% strikeout fee was the precise type of factor that prospect evaluators had been involved about in earlier seasons. His .167/.195/.310 line was clearly disagreeable.
Last yr was a breakout. An early damage to Rogers opened up some taking part in time, and Dingler ran with it. By the tip of the yr, he had appeared in 126 video games. His protection acquired robust grades, as anticipated for a man who was thought of a glove-first prospect. He was credited with six Defensive Runs Saved, placing him among the many prime 15 catchers for that stat. FanGraphs had him as one of many recreation’s 10 finest pitch framers. Statcast had him within the prime ten by way of framing, throwing and blocking. He gained the American League Gold Glove for the catcher place.
The offense was arguably extra notable, given his previous status. Dingler’s 23.5% strikeout fee was a bit greater than common however very tolerable and definitely higher than his minor league work. His 4.9% stroll fee was subpar, however he hit 14 house runs and slashed .278/.327/.425 for a 109 wRC+. That was juiced by a .345 BABIP however was encouraging nonetheless.
So far in 2026, he’s been even higher. It’s a tiny pattern of 83 plate appearances however his stroll fee has moved up a bit to six%, nonetheless nicely under common however an uptick nonetheless. His strikeout fee is all the best way all the way down to 16.9%. He has a .264/.346/.528 line and 145 wRC+, regardless of a subpar BABIP of .264. Statcast places his common exit velocity within the 84th percentile of certified hitters. His hard-hit fee is 96th and barrel fee ninety fifth.
As talked about, that could be a small pattern and perhaps he can’t keep it. But at this level, Dingler has 639 profession plate appearances. Even together with his nightmare begin in 2024, he has a mixed .261/.311/.421 line, 104 wRC+, 4.9% stroll fee and 24.1% strikeout fee. That stroll fee might even enhance, since he normally walked about twice as a lot within the minors.
Maybe the strikeouts will creep again up, however there are some encouraging indicators underneath the hood. Dingler had a good eye, therefore the walks within the minors, however he would miss when he did determine to swing. As talked about within the pull quote above, an enormous drawback was him lacking balls within the strike zone, not a lot an issue with chasing.
His contact fee in Double-A in 2022 was 67.8%. For context, the foremost league common final yr was 76.4%. In 2023, when he was nonetheless hanging out quite a bit within the minors, his contact fee was 70.6%. But in 2024, he obtained that up above 76%, each within the majors and within the minors. He was at 77% final yr and is at 78.5% up to now in 2026.
It’s potential that pitchers regulate how they assault Dingler. Perhaps as a consequence of his status, 53.8% of the pitches he noticed final yr had been within the strike zone. That was nicely above the league common of 41.9%. In the early going right here in 2026, solely 47.8% of pitches he has seen have been within the zone. That’s nonetheless above par however an enormous drop from the yr earlier than. If pitchers proceed to throw him fewer strikes, he might have to regulate his strategy, however he’s not a free swinger proper now. His 48.5% swing fee final yr was above common however barely, because the league-wide imply was 47.4%. Since he was getting attacked extra, it is sensible that he would swing extra. He is as much as 49.5% this yr, regardless of seeing fewer pitches within the zone, although he’s nonetheless getting balls over the plate quite a bit.
The total package deal has been invaluable up to now. Dingler has appeared in 174 massive league video games. Thanks so his contributions on either side of the ball, FanGraphs has credited him with 5.0 wins above alternative. Dating again to the beginning of final yr, Cal Raleigh and Shea Langeliers are the one backstops with extra fWAR. Baseball Reference is a little more bearish, giving him 3.9 WAR up to now. Time will inform if Dingler can maintain his positive factors on the strikeout aspect of issues, however the protection provides him a powerful ground and he can clearly put a cost within the ball when he does join.
Dingler’s breakout is a superb improvement for the Tigers. They are about to lose Rogers to free company in a number of months. If Dingler had been a strikeout-prone backup, as anticipated, Detroit would have been in search of a brand new catcher within the coming offseason. Instead, they need to have the ability to simply roll with Dingler.
They might have to switch Rogers, however that may be completed in home. Eduardo Valencia is already on the 40-man roster and has some helium because of a .319/.405/.622 displaying in Triple-A final yr. His numbers aren’t as robust up to now in 2026, at present sporting a .182/.308/.299 line, however with an unlucky .222 BABIP. There are questions on whether or not he can stick behind the plate, however the Tigers are nonetheless attempting. He’s been within the catcher place for 101 innings this yr, in comparison with 53 1/3 at first base. FanGraphs at present considers him the No. 8 prospect within the system.
Dingler is managed by way of 2030, so there are additionally long-term inquiries to be answered. A few Detroit’s prime prospects are catchers. Thayron Liranzo and Josue Briceño are consensus prime 5 guys within the system. Briceño is mostly thought of a top-100 prospect. Liranzo is already on the 40-man roster however hasn’t but reached the Triple-A degree. He spent most of 2025 at Double-A and struck out at a 31.7% fee. He was slowed by an indirect pressure this spring and is simply now getting ramped up. Briceño additionally reached Double-A final yr and hit higher however has extra questions on his means to stay at catcher. He not too long ago underwent wrist surgery and is prone to miss a number of months of this yr. Neither of those two are knocking on the door but however may very well be sooner or later.
Even if Briceño is in the end pushed to first base and designated hitter, the Tigers have Spencer Torkelson and Kerry Carpenter underneath membership management by way of 2028. It’s potential the Tigers will get to a degree the place they really feel somebody from that group may be traded.
Even in the event that they don’t construct up sufficient of a surplus to commerce somebody, Dingler’s improvement is nice for the long-term backbone nonetheless. Kevin McGonigle is now signed by way of 2034 and may very well be the on a regular basis shortstop for a lot of that span. Max Clark is likely one of the prime prospects in all of baseball and is at present taking part in in Triple-A. He ought to be up sooner or later this season and may very well be the middle fielder in Detroit by way of 2032.
Along with that long-term core, the Tigers have monetary flexibility. Thanks to an aversion to long-term free agent contracts lately, their books are pretty clear. The Javier Báez deal is finished after 2027. Framber Valdez is signed by way of 2028 however can choose out of the ultimate yr. All their different gamers making eight-figure salaries are slated free of charge company after the present season. Pretty quickly, the McGonigle and Colt Keith extensions would be the solely assured offers on the books, and people aren’t particularly onerous.
The Tigers will most likely want extra pitching. Valdez can choose out after 2027. Tarik Skubal, Jack Flaherty, Justin Verlander and Casey Mize are free brokers after the present season. That clear payroll outlook will give the entrance workplace house to signal guys, and as talked about, they might additionally discover themselves with a place participant logjam that results in a commerce.
Detroit may additionally discover a Dingler extension in the event that they had been so inclined. He would most likely be amenable to 1. Catchers don’t age particularly nicely as a result of rigors of the place, which implies they not often obtain massive free agent offers — at the least relative to different place gamers. J.T. Realmuto obtained to $115.5MM again in 2021, and he’s nonetheless the one free agent backstop to crack 9 figures. That’s an enormous quantity, however dozens of infielders and outfielders have overwhelmed that handily.
Dingler was a little bit of a late bloomer, as he didn’t attain the majors till his age-25 season and didn’t get away till he was 26. His window of membership management already goes by way of his age-31 season, which means he would hit the open market forward of his age-32 marketing campaign. If the Tigers needed to lock him up and add one other yr or two, it appears honest to imagine he would have an interest.
Extensions for catchers this early of their careers are uncommon. Most of the notable latest offers for catchers got here after they pushed into their arbitration years. Will Smith signed his $131.5MM take care of the Dodgers when he had over 4 years of service time. Alejandro Kirk was additionally in that bucket when the Blue Jays gave him $58MM. Raleigh and Sean Murphy had between three and 4 years of service after they obtained $99.4MM and $73MM, respectively.
The one latest deal that aligns with Dingler’s present standing is the eight-year $50MM deal signed by the Nationals and Keibert Ruiz. Apart from the truth that each catchers have between one and two years of service, it’s not a terrific comp. Ruiz hadn’t had as a lot success then as Dingler has now. The deal was principally a guess on Ruiz’s prospect pedigree, which has not panned out up to now. Ruiz has principally struggled and the deal appears like an albatross. It’s protected to presume he’d prime that deal by a cushty margin.
Contract discuss apart, Dingler is making the Tigers stronger now and may proceed to take action for years to come back. Detroit will face some challenges with none of their starters signed long-term, however the Tigers have a powerful basis on the place participant aspect to make the most of, with Dingler quickly rising as a key piece of that core.
Photo courtesy of Rick Osentoski, Imagn Images
