When first baseman Spencer Torkelson takes the field on Friday against the Chicago White Sox, 667 days will have passed since the Detroit Tigers made him the No. 1 selection in the 2020 MLB draft.
It’s a meteoric rise considering Torkelson had yet to take a professional at-bat (outside of spring training) at the same time last year. But then, the former Arizona State star was already part of a select club known for making rapid ascents from the draft to the majors. Torkelson was just the 14th college position player selected No. 1 overall in 56 iterations of the draft, dating back to 1965.