# How Tigers’ Riley Greene became a star, from A to Zzz
Full article at link.
======
On an ordinary day, Riley Greene might’ve watched movies until 2 a.m., slept until whenever, then foraged for nourishment along Lakeland’s magnificent mile of fast-food joints. He was in the process of growing into a major-league ballplayer, but mostly, he was in the process of being 20 years old.
A few years and many miles later, he laughs about it now. So does his buddy, Spencer Torkelson, who roomed with Greene during Tigers spring training and in the minor leagues.
Movies. Video games. DoorDash. Fishing. Golfing. Zaxby’s. Chick-fil-A
=====
Now that he’s much, much older — all of 24 — he talks about protein powders and vitamins and chef-prepared meals. He obsesses over getting nine hours of sleep every night. No, he didn’t just wake up and become an All-Star, one of the best young hitters in the game. He’s been a budding star almost since the day the Tigers drafted him No. 5 overall in 2019. Now he’s a buzzing star, a transformation that he promises isn’t close to complete.
On the Tigers’ deep, balanced roster, there’s one quantifiable superstar in Tarik Skubal, and another on the way. Greene has 22 home runs and 72 RBIs, already nearly topping his 2024 full-season totals of 24 and 74. He’s hitting .279 with an .856 OPS, a leader on a team with a 59-35 record, tops in the majors. In his fourth full season, he just made his second All-Star Game, his first as a starter, trailing only Aaron Judge in votes among American League outfielders.
=======
Injuries were a problem early in Greene’s career — broken foot, leg stress fracture, hamstring issues — partly because of his everyday aggressiveness. He’s an unabashed leaper and diver, willing to chase balls to the walls. Now as his frame fills out and his game expands, he exhibits more cautious wisdom. Part of the growth was simply feeding his body’s needs. Ask him the secret, and his answer is Zzzzz.
“This past offseason I was on top of my stuff, eating better, taking my supplements, my protein powder,” Greene said. “And I’m sleeping way better. I feel like I’ve grown up when it comes to the health side of things. It’s a game-changer.”
And he’s become one. With the most pronounced upper-cut swing in baseball, according to analytics, he strikes out a lot (leads the majors with 123). But he produces uncommon power for his modest size (6-2, 200). To preserve the mechanics of his lefty swing, he even learned to play golf right-handed.
“I’m not trying to strike out,” Greene said with a smile. “But if I strike out 120 times, I really don’t care, to be honest. It’s part of the game. I’m getting older, getting stronger. My chase rate is still through the roof, don’t get me wrong. But I think I’m getting better pitches to hit, and I’m doing damage when I do hit them.”
===========
It takes a patient, seasoned manager to handle it. Hinch and his staff have been masterful developing young players.
“I think sometimes we lose track of where these guys are in their life cycles,” Hinch said. “A lot of things you learn as young adults, they’re having to do on the national stage. I know Riley’s cleaned up his diet, he’s cleaned up his routines, he’s cleaned up his sleep. His whole life is happening, and with the attention he’s getting, he’s learning how to be his best every day.”