Sports Pro File: Detroit Tigers Outfielder Brennan Boesch

It was April 23, 2010 and the Detroit Tigers were just dealt the bad news that their All-Star left fielder, Carlos Guillen, would have to go on the disabled list because of a strained hamstring. The Tigers called up rookie Brennan Boesch to take his place. Boesch would make his Major League debut later on that day and double in his first at-bat, one of two hits he would have in the game. Now over a month later Carlos Guillen is back from his injury, but now playing second base, and Boesch is still patrolling left field in Detroit.

Brennan Boesch was born on April 12, 1985 in Santa Monica, California. He went to college at the University of California for three years. While at California he was a Pac-10 Conference all star his sophomore year in 2005. He would fore go his senior season and enter the Major League Baseball draft in 2006. The Tigers selected Boesch in the third round with the 82nd overall pick.

In 2006 Boesch was sent to the New York/Penn League where he knocked in 54 runs in just 70 games. He kept hitting and driving runs in every stop in the minors, with his best season being in 2009 at AA Erie of the Eastern League. That season he crushed 28 home runs and drove in 93 runs. He started the 2010 season at AAA Toledo where he drove in 17 runs in just 15 games.

Since being called up to the Tigers, Boesch has a batting average of .330 with 4 home runs and 22 RBI in just 28 games. His first big league home run was a grand slam off of Los Angeles Angels pitcher Joel Piniero on April 30.

Boesch's play has changed the Tigers plans in a good way. The team was given the flexibility to put Guillen back in the infield and send struggling second baseman Scott Sizemore back to the minors.

At the end of the season the Tigers will probably have an outfielder in the discussion for American League Rookie of the Year. At the beginning of the season most people would have guessed that outfielder would have been Austin Jackson, but that was before Brennan Boesch arrived on the scene. Now he will probably have to battle Tampa Bay's Wade Davis and Texas' Neftali Feliz for the honor, and if he keeps hitting the way he has he will win.

Sources:

baseball-reference.com, Brennan Boesch page

thebaseballcube.com, Brennan Boesch page