Despite the wealth of injuries among this cohort already, the Detroit Tigers didn’t back off of their draft strategy in 2025. They went prep heavy from the start, sprinkled in some college players they
hope to improve, and tried to save money to lure some talented high schoolers into signing and starting their pro careers. Right-hander Ryan Hall gives the Tigers yet another talented young arm to try and develop. Hopefully things will go more smoothly than the front office’s first two draft classes to date.
The Tigers took the 6’1” 175 pound right-hander in the fifth round last year. Hall got a bonus of $997,500, roughly $550,000 over the slot value, to pass on Georgia Tech. The Georgia raised, North Gwinnett High School product didn’t pitch after the draft, and odds are he’ll get extended spring training time this spring before going out to pitch in the Complex League in May or June, depending on how things are progressing.
Hall was a two-sport athlete in high school who played football as well as baseball. He was a good, if undersized, high school quarterback, but wasn’t really a standout on the mound until his senior year, when he grew a few inches and added muscle and better velocity on his fastball. He went from scraping 90-91 to sitting pretty comfortably in the low-90’s and hitting 95 on the radar gun. Hall moves well on the mound and gets pretty good extension for his size. He backs the heater up with a low 80’s slider with good two plane break and a spin rate that can top 2600 rpms. That pitch flashes above average already while Hall showed some feel for a circle changeup as well.
This is a bit of an upside play based on Hall’s overall athletic ability. His strike throwing is still pretty raw, but that athleticism should help him develop well in pro ball, and the Tigers will expect his balance and coordination to translate into good command in time. He’s got the projection to be a mid-90’s right-hander with a good breaking ball, a solid changeup, and good command eventually. The fact that he was a late bloomer who didn’t really start coming into his own as a pitcher until his senior year prior to the draft doesn’t hurt his profile either. He’s got a fairly low mileage arm as a pitcher and the Tigers scouts no doubt liked adding a young, athletic pitcher with this background who broke out late in his high school career.
Hall is more of a project rather than an established prep standout that tons of teams were on in the early rounds of the draft. He’ll probably take time to find his footing and is unlikely to move quickly in his first pro season. In year one we’re just looking for improved strike throwing and a more consistent breaking ball. He’s got the raw ingredients to be a mid rotation starter someday, but the risk level is high and the road is long.
