The Detroit Tigers entered Wednesday with a surprising 7-4 record. Arguably the top reason for Detroit's early season success has been an impressive rotation. The Tigers' starting five possessed the game's second-lowest ERA (2.02) through the first 10 contests of the year. To think, this is the same rotation that lost staff ace Michael Fulmer to Tommy John surgery before the season kicked off.
Obviously the Tigers current rotation isn't going to sustain this performance all year long. But the good news for Detroit fans is that there is help on the way in the form of numerous interesting pitching prospects who could arrive at Comerica Park in the coming years. Take a look at the Tigers' top six pitching prospects -- six because one is injured -- per MLB.com, and their lines from their first starts of the year (note pitchers are sorted by level descending):
The Tigers have invested a ton in these pitchers. Casey Mize was last year's No. 1 overall pick, joining Matt Manning (No. 9 in 2016); Beau Burrows (No. 22, 2015); and Alex Faedo (No. 18, 2017) as former first-round picks in the group. Kyle Funkhouser was also a first-round pick, albeit by a different team. He didn't sign and later slipped to the Tigers in the fourth round in 2016. Then there's Franklin Perez, the top piece in the Justin Verlander deal.
With so much riding on those six arms, we decided to go a little deeper, breaking each down to give a better feel for what the Tigers have coming through their pipeline.
Mize, the first collegiate right-hander taken No. 1 since Mark Appel in 2013, could probably debut this season if required. He throws strikes with a varied arsenal that includes a low-to-mid-90s fastball and a diving splitter that serves as his out pitch. The Tigers limited his professional workload last season, and could justifiably do the same this year. Nonetheless, Mize ought to slot in as an above-average starter whenever he gets called to the majors.
Manning is an athletic 6-foot-6 righty who could've played college basketball had the whole baseball thing not worked out. He has a good fastball-curveball combination, but his changeup and location lag behind and his drop-and-drive delivery negates his natural downward plane. In an ideal world, Manning, like Mize, is an above-average starter. The key word there is "ideal." There's a chance he's less than that -- especially if he can't find a third pitch or more command.
Perez is 21 years old with a starter's frame and a quality arsenal. Yet his stock has slipped due to durability woes. Perez has topped 70 innings once in a season, and is off to a rough start this year, as he'll miss at least a month due to shoulder tendinitis. The makings of a mid-rotation starter are here -- unfortunately, though, so are the makings of an attrition victim.
While Perez feels like he's a thousand miles from nowhere, Burrows is close to reaching the majors. His best pitches are his fastball and his changeup and his crossfire delivery gives him some deception. He doesn't have a true out pitch, however, and despite his name value he profiles as someone who will pitch closer to the back of a rotation than the front of one.
Best known for his time at the University of Florida, Faedo has taken a step backward since becoming a professional. He still uses an upright delivery with a long, slingy arm action that sees him release from a sidearm slot. Those mechanics arguably help his best pitch, a slider, but don't do him many other favors. He was hit around once he reached Double-A -- permitting 15 home runs in 60 innings -- and it's fair to wonder if he'll be more than a back-end guy.
Funkhouser is like a sampling of elements of the above. He too has regressed since the peak of his collegiate days, and has been limited due to injury -- he's yet to top 100 frames in a season. All the same, he probably will debut in the majors this season, likely as a back-end starter in the short term, and potentially as a reliever over the long haul.
Should everything work out to plan, the Tigers have something like a No. 2, potentially another No. 2, a No. 4, a few No. 5, and whatever Perez's body permits him to become (and the range of possibilities is too wide at the moment to make a guess). That collection may not be what dreams are made of -- everyone, unreasonably, wants their team to have five potential aces -- but it's a solid group who should help improve and fill out Detroit's rotation in the coming years.
