Fast-rising Tigers prospect vaults into top 10, leapfrogs struggling Max Clark

There's still no word on the status of Jackson Jobe, the Detroit Tigers' new No. 1 prospect, who was pulled from his May 1 start with visible discomfort in his leg. The Double-A Erie SeaWolves moved him to the 7-day IL with hamstring strain, but there haven't been any updates in the almost two weeks since he went down.

Before he got hurt, Jobe was in the midst of a seven-inning hitless streak over two starts. He only gave up two walks during that stretch and struck out 11 batters, improving his ERA to 2.16 and batting average against to .121.

Despite the worrisome lack of updates, Jobe has something to celebrate from the IL — MLB Pipeline's updated top 100 prospects list sent him shooting up the rankings to No. 10 from No. 21, supplanting Max Clark as the Tigers' No. 1 prospect overall and making him the No. 2 pitching prospect in all of baseball behind Pirates ace Paul Skenes.

Clark stayed put at 13 because of Jackson Churio and Evan Carter's graduations to the majors, with Nationals outfielder James Woods also breaking into the top 10.

Tigers' No. 1 pitching prospect Jackson Jobe leapt into MLB Pipeline's top 10 prospects after dominant start in Double-A

Clark continues to struggle in A-ball; he's batting .250 with a .695 OPS over 28 games. He's on a five-game hit streak through May 12, but it also seems like he's struggling to find much power in Florida, with just one home run so far and just four extra base hits. This is after a similarly disappointing first year in the minors in 2023, when he tore up Rookie ball in 12 games but faltered almost as soon as he was promoted.

With Colt Keith's promotion to the majors, only one other Tigers prospect is on MLB's updated list: Jace Jung, up 12 places from No. 60 to No. 48. Unlike Clark, Jung is looking very good in Triple-A, batting .282 with a .924 OPS, six home runs, and 27 RBI. His 60-grade power could be exactly what the Tigers lineup needs if they continue to drag into the late summer months, after Jung has gotten more reps in the minors, and he could fit perfectly into the Tigers' rotating strategy at second and third base. He's been out of the Mud Hens' lineup since May 9 with an "unspecified soreness," but has yet to be moved to IL, so hopefully the issue is minor.