While the Detroit Tigers offense may be struggling, the Toledo Mud Hens offense continues to be hot.
In this week's recap, we look at the hitting tear Justyn-Henry Malloy is on in Toledo, Erie's struggles in Richmond continue, the Whitecaps last home stand for the month of April and Lakeland celebrates another winning week against St. Lucie.
Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens (14-6) Run Diff: +31 0.5 back in IL West
When it comes to the offense these days involving the Detroit Tigers, look no further than the Toledo Mud Hens, who are third in the International League in runs scored with 128. Leading the charge is Justyn-Henry Malloy, who is tied for the IL lead in batting average with Hudson Haskin of Norfolk (Baltimore) with .391
For the week against Columbus, he went 9-for-22 with a pair of home runs and drove in 5. His slash line was an arcade like .409/.519/.773 with a wRC+ of 226
Another hit for Justyn-Henry Malloy. This one a 104-mph missile back up the middle for a single. pic.twitter.com/cexM5II1NZ
— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) April 23, 2023
Ryan Kreidler, who has been seeing regular time at second base since he was sent down, hit three home runs against Columbus, driving in 10. It appears that Kreidler has been working on his swing since being sent down
Ryan Kreidler smashes a 412-foot, 3-run homer to dead center to give a Toledo a 3-2 lead. pic.twitter.com/MPcGnWfvMG
— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) April 23, 2023
To the left, Ryan Kreidler down in Columbus, hitting a three run bomb. To the right, Kreidler in spring training about a month back.
— Rogelio Castillo (@rogcastbaseball) April 24, 2023
Much quieter at the plate in his preload swing. Getting time to work on his mechanics. He hit 3 homers for Toledo last week, driving in 10. pic.twitter.com/51YPncm7Me
Getting more at bats has appeared to help Kreidler, who has shown the ability to play multiple positions at the major league level, but just needs to hit on a consistent basis.
On pitching side, Alex Faedo, who was supposed to start on Saturday, was scratched from the start. No word on what happen, but something to keep an eye on. Right-hander Ashton Goudeau had his best start of the season, fanning eight in five innings of work, allowing one run on four hits. Toledo comes home to play the Syracuse Mets starting on Tuesday.