Detroit Tigers Minor League Report: Week 4

Erie SeaWolves

A 1-6 week from Erie has dropped their record to 8-17. The SeaWolves struggles have seen them fall into the basement of the Eastern League’s Western Division.

Spencer Turnbull posted his longest outing of the season this week, allowing three runs over six innings. The former Detroit Tigers second round pick also struck out eight without allowing a walk.

For the season, Turnbull has struck out twice as many as he’s walked, and has yet to allow a home run. He’s also been generating a ton of ground balls, picking up nearly twice as many outs from grounders as balls hit in the air. Those numbers would suggest an ERA better than the 6.00 mark he owns through five starts.

The reason for the elevated ERA could partially be bad luck. Per his FanGraphs page, Turnbull has allowed a .389 BABIP, which is well above average.

Additionally, Turnbull has stranded runners at a rate of 61 percent, which is roughly 10 percent below the major league average. Both of these numbers suggest a pitcher who has been more effective than his ERA suggests.

There are no guarantees, but if he keeps up a solid strikeout-to-walk ratio and continues to generate lots of ground balls, his overall numbers should start to improve. That improvement is just what Turnbull needs, in what is a potential make-or-break year for the right-hander.

The Offense

Kody Eaves returned from the disabled list to make his 2018 debut last week with Toledo. After a 1-for-10 start with the Mud Hens, Eaves was transferred to Erie.

A candidate to make his MLB debut with the Detroit Tigers sometime this year, Eaves went 0-for-5 in his first game with the SeaWolves. He followed that up by homering in back-to-back games, but has produced little else at the plate. Hopefully Eaves can settle in soon, and do enough to earn a promotion back to Toledo.

In the report’s first few weeks, we touched on the slow start at the plate for star defensive catcher Jake Rogers. Rogers managed a three-hit game this week, but they were the only three hits he had.

More concerning than his .190 average, is the lack of power he’s shown. All 12 of Rogers’ hits have been singles, meaning his slugging percentage is identical to his batting average. Not exactly what you’re looking for, even from a defense-first player.

Lakeland Flying Tigers

The Flying Tigers went 3-3 for the week, bringing their season mark to 12-15. They are currently five games out of first place in the Florida State League North Division.

Each week, we’ve been chronicling the starts of last year’s Detroit Tigers first round pick, Alex Faedo. Faedo was solid again this week, although he did have his first bit of trouble with walks.

Faedo walked three, having walked just one total in his first four outings. There doesn’t seem to be much cause for concern however, as the righty still threw more than two-thirds of his 94 pitches for strikes.

He also surrendered just three hits and one earned run over six innings, while striking out four. Through five starts, Faedo now owns a 2.48 ERA, 0.76 WHIP, and .175 opponents’ batting average.

Blaine Hardy wasn’t the only Detroit Tigers farmhand to record double-digit strikeouts in the last week. Lefty Austin Sodders struck out 10 in five innings on Tuesday against Clearwater (Philadelphia).

Sodders was a seventh round pick of the Tigers in 2016 out of UC Riverside. The southpaw entered 2018 with a 1.92 ERA over the course of his first two minor league seasons. It’s been an up-and-down start to the campaign for Sodders, but a 10-strikeout performance shows he’s more than capable of making some noise in the system.

The Offense

After a little bit of a slow start, Daz Cameron’s bat has started to heat up. Cameron has hit safely in 13 of his last 14 games, raising his average to .283. Cameron has also shown a good power stroke with eight doubles thus far, one shy of the Florida State League lead.

When the Detroit Tigers acquired the toolsy outfielder, they knew what they were getting in terms of defense and speed. It’s good to see the improvement in power he showed last year has stuck around, too.

West Michigan Whitecaps

A 3-5 week for the Whitecaps saw the club’s record to slip to 15-11. West Michigan is now tied for second in the Midwest League Eastern division, two and a half games out of first place.

Last week, the big news for the Whitecaps was the return of Matt Manning from the disabled list. Manning made his third start Thursday night, and things did not go so well.

The 20-year old lasted just two innings, allowing five runs on seven hits, with four walks. Even the best pitchers in the world get hit sometimes, but the walks continue to be a concern.

Manning has now walked 12 in nine and two-thirds innings in his three starts for a rate of 11.1/9. That would be a phenomenal strikeout rate (which is even higher at 16.8/9), but it is a problem that needs to be fixed.

Elsewhere in the rotation, Garett King is continuing to rack up strikeouts at a high rate. Back in week two, we noted King already had a pair of eight-strikeout performances under his belt.

The Detroit Tigers 11th round pick from last year was at it again this week, fanning eight in six innings of work. Through four starts, King has 27 strikeouts in 22.1 innings, and owns a 3.22 ERA.

His numbers may be even better if he didn’t have a knack for giving up the long ball. In four starts, King has already surrendered four home runs.

King has been a fly ball pitcher this season, getting nearly two outs in the air for every ground out he’s recorded. Home runs can be a danger of being a fly ball pitcher, but if King keeps piling up the strikeouts the way he has, he should be just fine.

Return of Another High Pick

This week, last year’s second round pick Reynaldo Rivera made his 2018 debut for West Michigan. Rivera got his season started on the right foot, doubling twice in his first game.

The next day, Rivera collected two more hits, and launched his first homer of the year. His week slowed down a little after that, ending the week with a .226 average in eight games.

While the average may not be where he or the Detroit Tigers would like it yet, his power is a good sign. Of his seven hits, six went for extra-bases, with a pair of homers and four doubles. A hot and healthy Rivera would be a big boost to a Whitecaps offense that has been scuffling in the season’s first month.

Next: Who will be Detroit's new long reliever?

That’s it for week four of the Minor League Report. Make sure to check back each Friday for the latest news and happenings from around the Detroit Tigers system.