Tigers top pitching prospect dazzles in spring training debut

Well, that was fun, wasn't it? The Tigers' spring training game against the Twins was broadcast on Bally Sports Detroit today. A.J. Hinch made fans sit through on otherwise boring game with very little offense, but something tells us he knew exactly what he was doing.

Top pitching prospect Jackson Jobe came out of the bullpen in the ninth inning, with the Tigers up 1-0, for his spring training debut. His very first pitch? Just a 100 mph fastball. No big deal.

Just wait. We're just getting started. Later in the at-bat, he threw a 95 mph cutter. Yes. That's not a typo. Then came the high-spin sweeper, which induced a weak grounder for the first out of the inning.

After a whiff on the first pitch to the next hitter on the sweeper, Jobe hit 101 on the gun. Then, he hit 102.

After a couple of changeups, Jobe froze the hitter with a 101 mph bullet at the knees. Just absolutely disgusting stuff.

The last hitter was quickly dispatched on three pitches: a 96 mph cutter, followed by two straight nasty changeups. Just completely unfair.

If you haven't seen the full outing, my words just do not do enough justice for what this 21-year-old did today. Chris Brown from Motor City Metrics and Tigers Minor League Report posted the video on X, formerly known as Twitter, so here's a link to that. Otherwise, watch the replay on the Bally Sports App. It was truly something you'll want to see.

Watching that outing, my jaw was on the floor the entire time. I had no idea he had 102 in him, and it sounds like even he didn't think he did. Afterward, I kid you not, I couldn't stop laughing for like 10 minutes straight. It was one of the most absurd pitching performances I've ever seen.

This kind of thing just begs the question: how on earth can the Tigers let this kind of arm sit in the minors? He clearly has the best stuff in the organization, and that's saying something considering Tarik Subal and Alex Lange are both on the team. I get it, he's not perfect, and he probably has more development to do, but like...are they watching what we're watching? Putting him Double-A would be an enormous waste of everyone's time, especially Jobe's. There has to be a way to get him to the big leagues sooner rather than later. I have an idea. Stay tuned on that front.

But for now, do yourselves a favor and watch Jobe's outing. You won't regret it.