This stat makes Troy Melton look like Tigers' next great workhorse starter

Troy Melton has only pitched three starts since coming off the IL, but he's been a godsend for the Tigers' rotation.

Detroit was at their absolute worst through the vast majority of May, Melton at least always gave them their best chance of winning. In his season debut, he pitched 5 2/3 innings of one-run baseball, and the Tigers earned a 4-1 lead. His follow-up start was even better — seven innings, one run — but the White Sox got the best of Detroit's bullpen and a slacking offense.

Melton's latest was arguably the best of his career. He pitched eight innings and only gave up two runs against the Rays on June 3 to help solidify the Tigers' sweep.

All told, he has a 1.74 ERA in 20 2/3 innings. The Tigers are (tentatively) on the up-and-up, and Melton's return has been a massive part of their recent success.

He's only struck out nine batters so far, good for just a 3.92 K/9, but he's also been remarkably efficient, averaging 12.7 pitches per inning.

To modify a phrase: "He gets outs. Do we care if it's a strikeout or a groundout?"

Troy Melton's efficiency is making him one of the most valuable assets in the Tigers' pitching staff

Strikeouts and strikeout stuff tend to be a pitcher's biggest 'wow' factor. There's always the possibility that a pitcher who gets most of his outs inducing soft contact won't always get so lucky, or won't always be backed up by a defense who's ready to rise to the occasion. Those are valid concerns, but it's hard to knock what's clearly been working for Melton.

Because strikeouts and battling for them almost guarantees a pitch count being driven up. We saw a perfect example of that during the ALDS last year, when Tarik Skubal got the ball for Game 5 and struck out 13 batters but got pulled after the sixth because he was pushing 100 on his pitch count.

For Melton to be able to get through eight innings on less than 100 pitches is a very, very good sign. AJ Hinch didn't need Melton to pitch more than eight against the Rays when the Tigers had a 6-2 lead, but we have no doubt he would've been able to notch a complete game if they needed him to.

A little more swing-and-miss stuff will be important to keep an eye on from Melton, but so far, there's not much to complain about.

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