Could Detroit Tigers Rookie Ace Force AJ Hinch to Make This Tough Decision?
The Detroit Tigers have high hopes for their star rookie right-handed pitcher Jackson Jobe for 2025.
After he performed at a high level in spring training, the team opted to make him a full-time member of the starting rotation to begin the season.
Now, he'll get every opportunity to prove that he can slot in behind reigning AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal in what could quickly become one of the most dominant starting rotations in MLB.
For a lot of reasons, the Tigers and their fans are hoping that Jobe's rookie season could possibly mirror that of the 2024 National League Rookie of the Year, Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Skenes burst on to the scene last year and instantly proved that he was a slam-dunk ace level talent right from the jump.
It's not realistic to expect Jobe to do exactly that, but there are a few things Skenes pulled off on a single game basis that it would be great to see Jobe match.
In a Bleacher Report article in which he made a bold prediction for all 30 MLB teams, Joel Reuter speculated that Jobe could, like Skenes, take a no-hitter deep into a game during a season in which his team wants to ensure his health.
"Paul Skenes was lifted from a no-hitter twice during his rookie season as the Pirates did their best to protect a generational talent," Reuter wrote. "Jobe is not quite the prospect that Skenes was a year ago, but he is the consensus top pitching prospect in baseball and won the No. 5 starter job in the Tigers rotation. The 22-year-old has the stuff to make his own run at history, and manager A.J. Hinch will likely make the same tough decision."
In July of 2024, Skenes had a no-hitter through seven against the Milwaukee Brewers, but he had taken 99 pitches to get there.
He was controversially pulled from the game to protect his arm, and it's extremely likely that Hinch would do the same in a similar scenario with Jobe.
Everything we have seen from Hinch's pitching management style suggests a forward-thinking approach, and there's nothing forward-thinking about risking such a valuable asset's health for a shot at a single piece of history that's still far from a sure thing.
If the Tigers reach the postseason again, Jobe could easily act as the any-situation swingman that Hinch loves to deploy in high-leverage situations.
The possibility that Detroit could play that card on one of the biggest stages would be too enticing to risk Jobe's health in the regular season, even if he could throw a no-hitter otherwise.
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Kyle Morton has covered various sports from amateur to professional level athletics. A graduate of Fordham University, Kyle specializes in MLB and NHL coverage while having previous bylines with SB Nation, The Hockey Writers, HighSchoolOT, and Sports World News. He spent time working the beat for the NHL's Carolina Hurricanes and is an avid fan of the NHL, MLB, NFL and college basketball. Enjoys the outdoors and hiking in his free time away from sports.