Tigers surprise but still get tantalizing talent in No. 3 pick Max Clark

DETROIT — Max Clark did not see this coming either.

The Tigers No. 3 overall pick said Sunday night he got the call about 10 minutes before his name was announced on national TV. That’s when he learned he was going to be a Detroit Tiger.

“It was up until those last 10 minutes that I just genuinely did not know,” Clark said, “but getting that phone call was one of the coolest moments of my life.”

The pick, naturally, was met with some skepticism. The draft board fell in a way most in the industry assumed the Tigers would love. At No. 3, Florida outfielder Wyatt Langford — one of two elite college hitters along with LSU’s Dylan Crews — was on the board and primed to be picked. But you know what they say about assumptions.

The Tigers — who ran a sealed-tight draft process — instead went with arguably the best high school player in the class, a supreme talent in his own right who some believe could have gone No. 1 overall in other years.

“We think Max is an elite talent,” said Scott Harris, the team’s first-year president of baseball operations. “He was the best player on our board at that pick, and we are thrilled that he got to our pick. We think Max is a five-tool player. I think that label gets thrown around way too much in our industry. We think Max has all five.”

Time will be the only thing that can tell with certainty whether Harris got this pick right.

But listening to Clark talk Sunday night via video call, it was hard not to see at least some of what the Tigers liked.

Clark is known in baseball circles as a social media star who already has 346,000 Instagram followers. Only 18 years old, Clark on Sunday projected an admirable blend of self-awareness, maturity and blunt honesty.

Asked about what he hoped to bring to the Tigers, Clark said, “I want to be the guy who can change a clubhouse, be the guy displaying 110 percent every single day, having an absolute blast doing it, encouraging others to play as hard as they can and have as much fun as they can at the same time.”

When asked about questions surrounding his batting power, Clark said, “I would definitely say it is below the other four (tools), but in my opinion, it is still average, and my goal is to continue to develop that. … At the end of the day, I’m a gap-to-gap guy, I’m a hitter first, and the power will come.”

Asked about the biggest adversity he has encountered, Clark spoke of last summer, when he struggled to meet his own exponential expectations. “It was kind of the first summer I had had something just completely blow up in my face, thrown in my face, and it was just not my year. Obviously, the bad side of social media comes with that, of course. Learning how to deal with all of that at once as a 16-, 17-year-old kid was rough, but I would say overcoming that has made me into a brand-new player, brand-new person that is ready to attack all the failures that come in pro ball.”

Clark is expected to sign a below-slot deal equivalent to the value of the No. 4 overall pick. Harris did not confirm that but said of drafting Clark, “This was by no means an attempt to drive down a bonus. … Any potential bonus savings will be reinvested into the rest of the draft.”

As for the timeless high school versus college debate, Harris made it seem as though the Tigers discussed such things at length and still settled on Clark over Langford.

“We talked about it ad nauseam,” Harris said. “I think it’s important for everyone to remember some of the most talented players in our entire organization were high school drafts. Some of those guys have moved quickly. Perhaps not quickly enough for some of our fans, but you can get elite talent from both high school and college in the draft. In this situation, with Max available at our pick, he was the clear pick for us, and we’re thrilled he’s a Tiger.”

The Tigers worked Clark out at Comerica Park earlier this year, a meeting largely intended to gauge how Clark would react outside his comfort zone. Both sides came away impressed. Clark said he appreciated the face-to-face interactions.

“Makeup is a big deal for us in this organization,” Harris said. “Understanding the human behind the baseball player is really important to us.”

And beyond the personal, the Tigers are getting a very interesting talent. Many scouts agreed Clark is the closest thing to a true five-tool player in this draft. He has 70 grade speed, has the athleticism to stick in center field and has a smooth left-handed swing molded to drive balls in the gaps.

Clark’s speed on the bases seems made for MLB’s rule adjustments, and his gap-hitting style and range in the field could bode well in spacious Comerica Park.

“We love Max’s first step, his instincts, and we love his closing speed on the ball,” assistant general manager Rob Metzler said. “We think highly of his ability as an outfielder. That’s definitely part of the profile that matters to us.”

The only looming question is power. But remember there were similar questions a few years ago about a young, wiry Riley Greene. It did not take long for Greene to develop physically and showcase power potential in the minors.

This past winter, Clark worked to adjust his hand placement and stance in an effort to lift more balls to the pull side. At Franklin Community High School, Clark hit .646 with six home runs and 35 steals as a senior.

“This spring he was showing the ability to lift the ball to the pull side much more, “ Tigers scouting director Mark Conner said. “Max has the ability to use all parts of the field like we saw in years past. As he’s started getting stronger, the adjustments have allowed him to tap into his future power that’s coming.”

Sunday night, Clark wore a Tigers cap, a suit jacket, a bow tie, a black shirt and a chain around his neck. He was doing his post-draft interview from his parent’s kitchen, and he had just returned from a community draft party in his hometown of Franklin, Ind., that he said close to 800 people attended.

Clark will begin his pro career with much to prove, and many skeptics to win over. He also comes with plenty of hype to meet and with plenty of ability to unleash.

“Super, super excited to be (Harris’) first guy, and we’re gonna make some things great here in Detroit,” Clark said.