Five Biggest Tigers’ Draft Busts Since 2000: Number Five

Hello and welcome to a five-part series where I break down who I believe are the five biggest draft busts for the Detroit Tigers since the year 2000.

Each player will have their own article, giving you a full picture of just how high the expectations were and just how much they struggled to live up to them.

Some players didn't make the list, including Derek Hill, Spencer Torkelson and Casey Mize, though all are certainly honorable mentions.

To kick things off, we have the only positional player on the list.

In 2015, the Tigers had two picks inside the top 34. Sadly, both players ended up on this list of Detroit's five biggest draft busts since 2000. The fifth-biggest bust was selected with the 34th overall pick in the 2015 MLB Draft when Detroit selected a player named Christin Stewart.

Stewart was an outfielder who, according to Baseball America, had a "physical frame and produces above-average bat speed that, combined with the natural leverage in his swing, translates into plus raw power."

Just one year into his Tigers tenure, the future looked as bright as a flashlight at 3 in the morning. Stewart was named the Detroit Tigers' Minor League Player of the Year. Then, in 2017, he won the award again for the second consecutive season.

Tigers fans were chomping at the bit, waiting for this seemingly sure-fire breakout player to make his MLB debut.

That opportunity finally came in 2018, when Stewart appeared in 17 games with the Tigers. Across 72 plate appearances, he hit .267 with two home runs, showing a combination of hitting ability and power that gave fans reason to be excited.

So, heading into 2019, with the Tigers among the worst teams in baseball, Detroit gave Stewart the opportunity to prove himself at the major league level. He appeared in 104 games and collected 416 plate appearances, but his numbers took a step backward during his first season with nearly everyday playing time.

Stewart hit just .233 with a .305 on-base percentage, adding 10 home runs and 40 RBIs.

Stewart opened the 2020 season as the Tigers' starting left fielder, but things quickly went downhill. On September 9, he was optioned to the alternate training site after hitting just .171.

With the COVID-19-shortened MLB season and the cancellation of the minor league season, Stewart finished the year at the alternate training site, where he struggled even further, batting .167/.225/.300.

That was essentially the end of Stewart's time with the Tigers.

He went on to play in the Boston Red Sox organization in 2021 before eventually making his way to Mexican baseball in 2024.

After being drafted 34th overall and winning the Tigers' Minor League Player of the Year award in back-to-back seasons, Stewart's inability to produce at the major league level was a disappointing realization.

Baseball is a fickle game, and there are millions of players all trying to accomplish the same thing. Unfortunately, sometimes luck has everything to do with it. For Stewart, that luck simply wasn't on his side.

Continue reading the series:

Tigers' Biggest Draft Busts Since 2000: [Number One]

Tigers' Biggest Draft Busts Since 2000: [Number Two]

Tigers' Biggest Draft Busts Since 2000: [Number Three]

Tigers' Biggest Draft Busts Since 2000: [Number Four]