Detroit Tigers: Arizona Fall League Season Roundup

Detroit Tigers Arizona Fall League Roundup…the finale.

As the 2022 Arizona Fall League (AFL) ends, it’s only fitting to get one last weekly roundup in. The Detroit Tigers’ best performer, Joey Wentz, has already gone home, but there are still players to check up on and stats to be reported.

The Detroit Tigers affiliate team, the Salt River Rafters, was abysmal in the 2022 AFL season, struggling to do much of anything. They had a couple of decent weeks over time, but things did not pan out as they hoped.

As the season has wrapped up, it’s time to see how each of the Tigers’ prospects fared. First, here are links to the recap from the past few weeks!

• Week 1 AFL Recap
• Week 2 AFL Recap
• Week 3 AFL Recap
• Week 4 AFL Recap
• Week 5 AFL Recap

The Rafters did not end up getting into the playoffs that took place last week. Instead, the Surprise Saguaros took home the 2022 AFL Championship. As awards were handed out, several Rafters players were given honors, but none of the Tigers prospects out west were given any recognition.

The Rafters finished 12-18 on the season and posted a whopping -24 run differential. The pitching dominated the Rafters roster, but the offense picked up at times, helping a couple of players win awards, as previously mentioned.

The Tigers players were alright, with two of the prospects out west being named to the Fall Stars game, which happened the weekend of November 5th and 6th. But, enough of the roundtable for the Rafters and the AFL season; let’s dive into the Tigers’ prospects out west.

Here’s how Detroit Tigers pitching prospects fared in the 2022 AFL season

The Detroit Tigers had four players log time out west and record innings. It was a couple of low-range prospects getting in some extra work before the offseason began. Joey Wentz was the big-name prospect amongst the group who was downright dominant.

Matt Walker

There was not a whole lot of excitement around the 2022 AFL season Matt Walker had in his time out west. He had two really bad starts to kick things off, tarnishing his stats. He switched over to a relief role and got two appearances in to recover.

Walker finished the fall with four appearances for 7.2 innings pitched, allowing ten hits and seven earned runs. He issued three walks and added six punchouts. Things certainly could have been better for Walker this fall, that’s for sure.

Jack Anderson

Jack Anderson pitched out of the Rafters’ bullpen and often got the job done when called upon. He ended up picking up ten appearances of an inning a piece, and he finished with ten innings pitched in relief.

He grabbed a save in his one opportunity and managed to punch out seven and be efficient in his relief outings. He issued four walks and pitched to a 4.50 ERA and 1.90 WHIP. Things were not perfect for Anderson, but he was able to find success during most of his outings.

Tyler Mattison

Someone Detroit Tigers fans could classify as an AFL pop-up arm in 2022 is Tyler Mattison. He pitched in 10 games, tallying 11.1 innings pitched, where he managed a 3.18 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. He issued eight walks and allowed seven hits but was able to punch out 19 opposing hitters.

Mattison was solid when relied upon. He did allow five runs (four earned), but Mattison was smooth when he was on the mound for the most part. Hopefully, Mattison can take the things that went right this fall into next season as well.

Joey Wentz

Saving the best for last once again, Joey Wentz was absolutely dominant in his outings this fall. Things were cut short, and he was sent home early after being “too good.” Well, okay, that’s not exactly how it works, but after finding success early on, the Tigers opted to send him home.

Wentz made three starts in the 2022 AFL season, including four perfect innings in his first outing. Wentz threw 12 scoreless while allowing just two hits and four walks. He punched out 14 opposing hitters and consistently got it done in his four-inning outings this fall.