The future of the Detroit Tigers has been muted by their terrible performance on the field recently, but top draft pick Riley Greene may be the one who helps change things.

Greene, drafted number five overall by the Tigers in the June draft, made his West Michigan Whitecaps debut last night at Fifth Third Park in Comstock Park with a bang, legging out a rare inside the park home run, and making a great defensive play in the outfield as well.

Greene went 2 for 4 with a pair of RBIs in his debut, and those two plays I mentioned, made ESPN top ten highlights of the day. Unfortunately, the Caps couldn't hold off the high flying Bowling Green Hot Rods, losing 9-6.

First, Riley showed some serious speed, rolling around the bases when a Bowling Green outfielder injured himself trying to track down Greene's off the wall liner.

Next, Greene chased down a blast off a Bowling Green bat and dove to get the out, showing hustle reminiscent of Pete Rose in his prime.

The Tigers, and the Whitecaps fortunes won't change overnight, but young players like Greene sure make fans feel a little better about the future.

 

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