Alex Faedo, Beau Burrows turn in dominant outings

Lakeland Flying Tigers

A 3-4 week for Lakeland brought their overall record to 51-45. Their 15-11 second half mark puts them in second place in the Florida State League North.

Busy Week for Manning

In addition to Dawel Lugo, Matt Manning also represented the Detroit Tigers in the Futures Game in Washington D.C. The former first rounder retired the first three hitters he faced, including striking out Lugo to start the fifth.

The righty then ran into trouble, giving up a single and a home run which tied the game, 5-5. Following the homer, Manning allowed two more singles before ending his outing with a strikeout. All told, he worked an inning and a third, yielded two runs on four hits, and struck out two.

The number two prospect in the Detroit Tigers system per MLB Pipeline, Manning has pitched well in 2018. The righty posted a 3.40 ERA and 12.3 K/9 in 11 starts for West Michigan, before earning a promotion to Lakeland.

Manning made his third start for Lakeland Thursday night. The righty continued to stifle opponents’ bats, allowing two hits over his six and two-thirds innings. However, the walk trouble which has plagued him at times throughout his young career popped up again.

The righty fanned six, but issued five free passes, the third time he’s done so in 2018. In three starts with the Flying Tigers, he’s walked 10 in 16.2 innings (5.4/9). While the strikeout rate (10.8/9) and opponents batting average (.132) remain outstanding, improving control remains the main focus for Manning down the stretch of the season.

Perez Continues Climb

Detroit Tigers top prospect Franklin Perez continues to make his way back from an early season injury. The righty made his second start with Lakeland this week, and put up mixed results.

On one hand, Perez threw two and two-thirds scoreless frames, and struck out four. He also gave up four hits and walked three.

Between GCL Tigers East and Lakeland, Perez has made five appearances. Overall, he owns a 3.95 ERA, .213 opponents batting average, and a two-to-one strikeout-to-walk ratio. He has yet to go longer than three innings, and five walks in five and two-thirds innings for Lakeland is a bit concerning.

However, the Tigers are doing the smart thing by not rushing him along. It may end up being somewhat of a lost season for Perez, but at 20 years old, time is still on his side.

Burdeaux’s Hot Streak

First baseman Dylan Burdeaux enters the weekend riding an 11-game hitting streak. This 11-game run includes six multi-hit games, and has brought his season average up to .270.

On Tuesday, his hot streak infected the entire Lakeland offense. The Flying Tigers erupted for 15 runs on 20 hits. Each Lakeland batter collected at least one hit, and seven had at least two. The biggest frame for the Flying Tigers turned out to be the 10th, as they scored nine runs. Burdeaux picked up one of the biggest hits of the nine-run explosion, a bases-clearing triple.

Pair of 2018 Draftees Reach Lakeland

Two of the Detroit Tigers selections from June’s draft appeared for Lakeland this week. Clark Brinkman and Jordan Verdon each made brief stops in the FSL, becoming the first two members of Detroit’s 2018 draft class to reach High-A.

Unfortunately, neither fared particularly well, and both stints were short-lived. The longer of the two stints belonged to Brinkman. The 32nd rounder from Creighton went just 3-for-22 in six games, although two of the three hits were his first two professional homers.

Verdon played in just a pair of contests, going 1-for-7. Both began their pro careers in the Gulf Coast League, and after their stints with Lakeland, have joined Short-Season Connecticut.