Tigers hold hope Josue Briceño underwent surgery to repair a torn ligament in his right wrist yesterday and will miss an unspecified (but potentially significant) amount of time, reports Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free Press .
Briceño is considered one of the Tigers’ top five prospects and one of the top 100 prospects in the entire game. He is ranked 40th on MLB.com’s Top 100 list, 44th on ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel’s list, 59th on Keith Law’s The Athletic and 76th on Baseball America’s top 100 list for 2026.
The 6’4″ Briceño has the makings of an offensive power behind the plate or at first. He’s hit all over the minors since signing as a teenager in Venezuela back in 2022, including a stout .266/.383/.500 with 20 homers and an impressive 14.9% walk rate in 442 plate appearances between High-A and Double-A this past season. Every single one of those plate appearances came before Briceño celebrated his 21st birthday in late September.
There are many questions about Briceño’s ability to stay behind the plate. He has a strong throwing arm but draws negative reviews for his framing, receiving and ability to block pitches in the dirt. He’s on the tall side to crouch behind the plate consistently – although there have been a few 6’4″ and even 6’5″ catchers over the years – but that height will also help him at first if he changes positions further down the road. For now, he’s been splitting time between catcher and first base in roughly a 60-40 fashion, with more reps behind the plate than at first.
Catcher is the obvious depth position for the Tigers, so Briceño would not be able to make his big league debut this season. A former second-round pick Dillon Dingler he hit .278/.327/.425 with 13 home runs and a save in 469 plate appearances last year, nabbing the team’s starting gig in the process. A veteran Jake Rogers exists as a backup with added defensive skills but declining production in the box. It is twenty-two years old Thayron Liranzolike Briceño, he is another well-regarded catcher who played at the Double-A level last year. He had a tough game there in his age-21 season but did draw a top 100 fan base this time last year.
Dingler is manageable for five more seasons, so barring any major moves back, he’ll likely hold the position for the foreseeable future. Briceño (or Liranzo) could emerge as a backup candidate and interim/designated hitter as soon as next season, depending on when he recovers from yesterday’s surgery. Rogers is a free agent at the end of the season, and Briceño will need to be added to Detroit’s 40-man roster in mid-November to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft (if he’s there; the 2021 Rule 5 Draft was waived due to the offseason, and another lockout is expected this December). Liranzo was added to the 40-man in November 2025 to avoid last year’s Rule 5.
