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When he arrived in Detroit at the start of the month, he was making the trip from Triple-A Toledo as an extra catcher, to play in a game or two every so often over the final few weeks, and to learn largely by watching. It was as much a reward as an evaluation, after his solid season at Double-A Erie provided a glimmer of hope for a Tigers farm system that has been looking for young catching for years.

As manager Jim Leyland told reporters upon granting Ryan his first Major League start a couple weeks ago, "I think he has played his way to the prospect level."

Ryan's play since then has raised the question of how close to the big league level he has played himself for next season.

It would be a huge leap next year, but the fact that it's even fathomable is a statement on how Ryan has impressed over the past couple of weeks. He has suddenly grown from a young catcher whose biggest feats were more like legends of physical might -- hitting a statue on the outfield concourse at Comerica Park, accidentally hitting a pitcher who wasn't prepared for his throw on a stolen-base attempt -- to someone building a resume in real, live games.

"People take notice of him anyways," Tigers player development director Glenn Ezell said. "He's 6-foot-4, and he's got the catching gear on, and he's a solid piece of granite. But what's happening now is his confidence level and the fact that he's hitting the fastball [are] allowing people to see him in another league, too."

It might not earn him a ticket to stick in the Majors when the Tigers open next season, but it earns him a much longer look than he otherwise might've received.

"We're looking at him, obviously," Leyland said between games of last Sunday's doubleheader at Chicago, where Ryan played the entirety of both contests. "This is a little bit of a showcase for him."

The tools were evident long before he arrived. He's the biggest backstop the Tigers have had in almost a decade and earns physical comparisons to the great Lance Parrish. He's tall enough to stand over some opposing hitters before he squats down behind the plate.

Within that body frame comes a lot of power. The batting-practice homer off Charlie Gehringer's statue came in his first day with the team and flashed the swing that connected for 15 homers over 338 plate appearances at Erie. Ryan later launched a homer over the Metrodome baggie in his first Tigers start.

That power also translates into his arm. The story of hitting a pitcher with a throw is like a cautionary tale for someone who threw out 18 of 46 would-be basestealers at Double-A before catching nine out of 27 with Toledo.

"Yeah, it's happened twice in my career," Ryan said.

His arm is strong enough that the Tigers once briefly considered converting him to a pitcher before waiting to see where catching took him. Where he is now is a pretty good spot.

Ryan enters Friday having caught four of Detroit's past five games. His latest was Wednesday in the Tigers debut of Freddy Garcia, whom Ryan caught in both of Garcia's simulated games. It also allowed Brandon Inge to fill in for the injured Carlos Guillen at third base, where Inge's defense is an advantage.

To say Ryan is using the time to his benefit would be an understatement. The ample playing time has allowed his intangibles to come through.

"Coming in, it can be pretty intimidating for a guy like that," said Nate Robertson, whom Ryan caught in the left-hander's seven innings of one-run ball last week. "He's young, he's a rookie, but he's come in here and, man, he looks like he's been here for a while, the way he's swinging the bat, the way he's calling a ballgame and just his demeanor. He doesn't look like he gets rattled too easy or anything like that. He's got a quiet confidence about him."

Ezell has worked with Ryan since Detroit drafted him out of Merced (Calif.) Junior College in 2003. When Ezell read those comments, he marveled.

"Dusty has started to trust himself, have a little more confidence in himself," Ezell said. "He's not beating himself up nearly as much as he had in the past. He still does it on occasion, but he has given himself a little freedom.

"It's absolutely OK to pat yourself on the back on occasion. You don't have to whack yourself with the fungo on your shinbone all the time. He's allowing himself to relax and let his ability do what is necessary for him to get better."

The question that Tigers officials must tackle going forward is how much better Ryan can get if he makes the jump to the Majors now to catch alongside or behind Inge. This year was his first above Class A ball, and he played just 20 games at Triple-A Toledo before getting the September call.

Leyland was pointed about not getting carried away with a September performance. But his even-handed evaluation reflects the impact Ryan has made.

"If I look at what I have seen so far, I mean, you would have to educate him a little bit on calling the game and everything and learning the hitters," Leyland told reporters Wednesday afternoon. "It would be a [crash] course and all that kind of stuff. But what meets the eye right now, I'd have to say Dusty Ryan can fill in the big leagues right now. But what's he going to hit?"

That was before Ryan's four-hit game against the Rangers on Wednesday. Still, given that Ryan entered this season with a .225 career average in the Minors, it remains a fair question. With the jump he has made, there are a lot of questions that follow him. But the fact that those questions are being asked now means he's getting noticed.

"He's always had good tools," Ezell said. "It's just a matter of whether he's going to let those tools work for him."

Jason Beck is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.

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