Detroit Tigers Minor League Report: Holy Toledo

We’ve entered the final month of baseball, and for Detroit Tigers minor leaguers it’s a chance to continue proving their prospect bona fides and make one final playoff push.

The Toledo Mud Hens have the deepest collection of Detroit Tigers prospects right now, and they also happened to play the most pivotal series of any team in the system last week, so that’s an easy place to start.

Toledo Mud Hens (62-46) – 1st place in Triple-A East, Midwest Division

The Mud Hens traveled to Omaha for a huge series against the Storm Chasers, Kansas City’s Triple-A affiliate, who entered the week just two games behind Toledo in the standings. And if a tussle for divisional control weren’t enough, the games also featured three of the top five prospects in all of baseball. All the stars showed up, and though Toledo went just 3-4 in the series, they managed to leave town with a one-game lead in the division.

The series was filled with offensive fireworks, and five of the games were decided by two runs or fewer. Omaha took the first game of the week 9-3, but Toledo rebounded by winning the opener of Wednesday’s doubleheader 7-2 thanks to two homers from Spencer Torkelson and two extra-base hits from Riley Greene:

Then in the nightcap the Hens staged a game-tying rally in the 7th thanks to hits from Ryan Kreidler and Kody Clemens, but the Chasers pulled out the win in extras. Toledo got early home runs on Thursday from Daz Cameron and Isaac Paredes, and then held on for a 5-3 win. Omaha took the next two tilts, though Torkelson made Friday’s game interesting with a game-tying blast in the 8th, but Sunday’s finale was full of fireworks. The Mud Hens jumped out to a 9-0 lead thanks to a pair of homers from Greene, and blasts from Josh Lester, Kreidler, and Clemens. The Storm Chasers vaulted back into the game with six runs in the 5th, but Clemens and Torkelson went deep in the 6th to give Toledo a bit more space. Then the team held on for dear life, finishing the 9th with a wild double play to secure an 11-10 victory.

The Mud Hens hit 14 home runs on the week, and they’ll take their power show on the road to Des Moines for a six-game set against the Iowa Cubs beginning tonight.

West Michigan Whitecaps (53-55) – 4th place in High-A Central, East Division

The West Michigan Whitecaps kicked off a season-ending 12-game homestand with a terrific 5-1 performance against the Peoria Chiefs that kept the club within six games of a playoff spot. The week was highlighted by a power surge from 2017 2nd-rounder Rey Rivera that earned him Player of the Week honors:

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West Michigan also got strong performances from Jake Holton, who hit two kinds of home runs, Austin Murr, who extended his hitting streak to 13 games, and Gage Workman and Parker Meadows, who combined to hit .277 with with two doubles and two homers. The club also threw in a walk-off win for good measure.

Adam Wolf (4.1 IP, 8H, 6ER) had a bit of a rough go for the Whitecaps on Saturday, but as a whole the starting pitching was terrific last week, posting a 2.81 ERA overall with 32 strikeouts in 32 innings. Austin Bergner (6IP, 4H, 8K) and Brendan White (5.1 IP, 6H, ER, 8K) were particularly dominant, but the two most notable pitching performances of the week may have come from position players.

Sunday’s 4-2 Caps win also marked the professional pitching debut of Peoria’s Masyn Winn, who was drafted by the Cardinals in the 2nd round last year as a potential two-way player. He has held his own on offense this year, but he displayed some nasty stuff off the mound on Sunday. Meanwhile, Whitecaps infielder Jose King made his professional pitching debut on Friday night, during West Michigan’s lone loss of the week (also the game Rogelio and I happened to attend). His stuff wasn’t quite as electric, but it was fun to watch nonetheless.

West Michigan concludes its home schedule this week with a six-game series against the Great Lakes Loons, with promotions celebrating dogs, fans, Paw Patrol, and The Office. Seems like a solid time to change the team’s name to the Dwightcaps, but maybe that’s just me.

Lakeland Flying Tigers (46-61) – 6th place in Low-A Southeast, West Division

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The playoffs have long been out of the question for the Flying Tigers, so they’re largely spending the final month of the season dodging Florida weather. Last week saw two weather-related postponements and two more suspended games, though Lakeland came out of it all with a solid 3-2 record against Clearwater. Offense is always hard to come by in the former Florida Sate League, and the Flygers didn’t hit a single home run on the week, but the unheralded infielder Carlos Mendoza may be opening a few eyes. Last week he went 5-for-11 with two doubles, a triple, and five walks against just two strikeouts, and he’s now batting .305/.438/.407 through his first 17 games in Lakeland.

The pitching equivalent of Mendoza might be Wilmer Flores, who had an excellent outing last week (5.2 IP, 4H, ER, BB, 9K) and shows interesting stuff. The Detroit Tigers signed him in 2020 as an undrafted free agent out of Arizona Western Community College, and though he is ostensibly a college player, he’s actually the youngest pitcher on the roster, not turning 21 until next February. His 5.36 ERA is unsightly, but it obscures an impressive 2.61 FIP, and he throws a 4-seam fastball that sits at 94MPH and has touched 98, an upper-70s curve, and a cutter that averages 89 MPH. He shows above-average spin rates on all three offerings, and should at least carve out a career as a solid minor-league reliever.

Florida Complex League Tigers East (16-28) – 15th place

Florida Complex League Tigers West (15-28) – 17th place

Dominican Summer League Tigers (14-24) – 8th place, San Pedro Division

Down in the Complex League teams are dealing with the same weather issues as Lakeland, but offense isn’t as hard to come by. The Tigers East had a rough week, with a 1-5 record that included a 24-4 loss, but there are some interesting offensive prospects on the squad. Chief among them is Manuel Sequera, who is showing prodigious power and enjoyed a 3-homer game last week.

The blinking red lights for Sequera are his walk (6.7%) and strikeout (29.9%) rates and his .243 batting average, but perhaps it’s useful to compare him to Izaac Pacheo, Detroit’s 2nd rounder from the 2021 draft. Both are shortstops (though Sequera is decidedly more shortstop-shaped than Pacheco) and both are in their first years of pro ball. Pacheco is just seven weeks younger than Sequera, and while he currently owns a 14.1% walk rate, his .218 batting average and 38% strikeout rate point to some difficulty adjusting to pro ball. Both players have plenty of time to adjust though.

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Another name of interest in the complex leagues is 20-year-old catcher Danuerys De La Cruz, who is hitting .288 with 13 extra-base hits and nearly as many walks (25) as strikeouts (31). His .961 OPS is good for 2nd in the FCL. Bonus baby Roberto Campos remains among the league-leaders in home runs, though he hasn’t played since August 23rd.

The DSL Tigers were on the wrong side of a no-hitter last week, and the Detroit Tigers 2020 International class (signed in January 2021, because confusion is fun) is seeing some mixed results. Shortstop Cristian Santana is batting just .221, but he’s tied for 3rd in the league with six home runs, while infielder Abel Bastidas is hitting only .168, but he ranks 5th with 31 walks. Meanwhile, pitcher Rayner Castillo seems to be holding his own, with a 3.76 ERA, 37 strikeouts, and 11 walks in 38.1 innings.