There are fourteen active former Tigers that dot the professional baseball map, from Rookie league all the way up to the Majors. Five of them (Excluding Josh Donaldson and David Ross) continued fighting their way to the top this spring, earning playing time among the names and big shots of their parent clubs.
Dan Gamache
The 5-foot-11 Newport, Rhode Island, native was one of the best hot corners to ever come through The Plains, posting a career .337 batting average with 16 home runs and 77 RBIs in three years at Auburn. He hit .300 or higher every season, even through injuries. Damache managed 13 spring training games this year as a non-roster invitee with 16 plate appearances. He batted .125 with two runs, two hits, four walks and seven strikeouts. Now the first pick of the sixth round of the 2011 draft is playing for the Indianapolis Indians, the Triple-A club for the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Casey McElroy
A three-year starter, McElroy made his mark during his junior year, leading the Tigers with a .372 average, nine home runs and 53 RBIs. He was a career .330 hitter at Auburn with 25 home runs and 131 RBIs. The second baseman played only three games in spring training with the San Diego Padres this year with one huge at-bat, where he knocked in a three-run homer for 2 RBIs and a 1.000 batting average. Drafted shortly after Gamache, the 2011 draftee is with the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas this season.
Trey Cochran-Gill
Tallasee native and three-year Auburn veteran Trey Cochran-Gill was selected by the Seattle Mariners in the 17th round of the 2014 draft. He signed with the Mariners in June of 2014 and made his way all the way up to Triple-A for one start in a single season. He spent 2015 with the Mariners' Double-A affiliate Jackson Generals before being traded to the Oakland A's in the offseason. The right-hander went 0-1 in three games with the A's this year in spring training, allowing four runs and posting a 3.86 ERA in 2.1 innings. He'll start the 2016 season with the A's Double-A team, the Midland Rockhounds.
Garrett Cooper
A career .346 hitter in college, Cooper was a sixth round pick by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2013 draft. The 6-foot-6 hot corner-turned-first baseman spent the past 2 1/2 seasons in between Rookie and Single-A ball before finally reaching the Double-A level in 2015. Cooper played in three games with the Brewers at spring training with only two at-bats — one resulting in a walk — for a .000 batting average. He returns to the Double-A level for the 2016 season with the Biloxi Shuckers, and should see time at Riverwalk Stadium in Montgomery.
Grant Dayton
An 11th round pick in 2010, Dayton has spent the past three seasons of his minor league career transferring between Double and Triple-A. Originally drafted by the Miami Marlins, Dayton found his place with the Dodgers in 2015, but only saw 0.1 innings in spring training, issuing three walks and no strikeouts. He returns to the Dodgers Double-A affiliate Tulsa Drillers for the 2016 season.
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