Detroit Tigers Have More Pitching Ready to Break Out in Minor Leagues

The Detroit Tigers have a minor league system that is brimming with talent, especially the talent on the mound.
Detroit Tigers pitcher Kenta Maeda warms up during spring training at TigerTown in Lakeland, Fla. on Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2024.
Detroit Tigers pitcher Kenta Maeda warms up during spring training at TigerTown in Lakeland, Fla. on Tuesday, Feb. 20, 2024. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK
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Just because the Detroit Tigers called up several prospects at the end of last season doesn’t mean that the farm system doesn’t have talent anymore.

Infielders Trey Sweeney and Jace Jung, along with pitcher Jackson Jobe, are part of the Tigers’ Major League future. At some point in their minor-league careers, they each enjoyed a breakout season that put them on the national radar and accelerated their path to Detroit.

That could be said for three prospects in the Tigers’ minor league system entering the 2025 season.

Baseball America recently put a spotlight on each of the breakout prospects for all 30 MLB teams. The Tigers had three, two of which were pitchers.

To be considered, the prospect had to be ranked outside the team’s Top 10.

Right-handed pitchers Owen Hall and Tyler Mattison, along with catcher Enrique Jimenez, made the list. All three are Top 30 prospects, with Hall ranked the highest at No. 14.

Hall’s inclusion is curious because he hasn’t thrown a professional pitch yet. The Tigers selected him in the second round of last July’s MLB draft and offered him $1.7 million to walk away from his commitment to Vanderbilt and start his pro career.

The 19-year-old from Kingwood, Texas, is tangentially connected to Jobe, as the pair grew up in Oklahoma and have worked out together.

But Hall has an advanced make-up. Baseball America considers Hall’s pitch mix to be that of a college pitcher, with a fastball that grades 60 on the 20-80 scouting scale. He throws five different pitches, and he’s pegged to start his professional career with Class-A Lakeland.

Mattison went a much different route. He pitched five years of high school baseball and then went to Bryant for four years, where finished his career as one of the best pitchers in that program’s history. The Tigers liked him enough to take him in the fourth round of the 2021 MLB Draft, even though he didn’t go to a traditional baseball power.

He was extremely effective as a reliever in 2022-23, going a combined 12-2 with a 3.26 ERA with 145 strikeouts and 47 walks in 99.1 innings. He also has eight saves and eight holds.

The Tigers will be cautious with him as he missed all of 2024 with Tommy John surgery. But, before the surgery, the 25-year-old has a fastball graded at 70, which makes him a potential future closer.

Jimenez was an international signee, and the 19-year-old has played two years in the Detroit system. He has a two-year slash line of .259/.377/.397/.774 with four home runs and 36 RBI. He’s a rarity — a switch-hitting catcher with power. There are other catchers in the pipeline that are more advanced, at least for now.


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