Detroit Tigers Final Two Starters Close Out Spring with Dominant Outings

The Detroit Tigers starting rotation looks ready to roll as it prepares for its opening day showdown with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Mar 13, 2025; Lakeland, Florida, USA; Detroit Tigers pitcher Jackson Jobe (21) pitches during the first inning against the New York Yankees at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium. | Mike Watters-Imagn Images

Opening Day is officially upon the Detroit Tigers with their 2025 campaign getting started Thursday evening against the defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers out on the West Coast.

Though there are still some question marks remaining as to what the team is going to do in order to fill their outfield spots due to various injuries, as well as the left side of the infield due to a lack of depth, but the biggest thing everyone wanted to know entering the spring was who was going to fill out the starting rotation.

Over the weekend, an answer was finally given. The No. 4 and No. 5 spots behind Tarik Skubal, Jack Flaherty, and Reese Olson are going to be occupied by former top prospect Casey Mize and current top prospect Jackson Jobe.

Both pitchers have had excellent spring in different ways with Mize looking better than he ever has in what was his final shot with the Tigers. Jobe, while still raw, beginning to showcase some of the elite stuff which makes him the top pitching prospect in baseball.

On Tuesday, both men got the chance to pitch in Detroit's final exhibition game of the spring against the San Francisco Giants, and neither one of them disappointed.

Jobe got the start and went four innings, and while he did allow three hits and two runs with two walks, he did some encouraging things as well by striking out five

All spring, the narrative surrounding Jobe is that while he was incredibly talented he may not be generating enough swing and miss to excel right away at the MLB level. Seemingly tuning things up at the right time, Jobe was making batters whiff at a much higher rate than he has been throughout camp:

Don’t like watching contact? Here are all of Jackson Jobe’s whiffs and called strikes from tonight. pic.twitter.com/fipSgMx2ZW

— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) March 26, 2025

Mize on the other hand, who came in relief of Jobe, may have saved his best for last in what was an absolute masterclass to cap off what has been a sensational spring for the former No. 1 pick.

In three innings pitched, Mize also allowed three hits, two runs and a walk, but he was able to strike out seven batters, something he has made a habit of from the first day of spring training with the return of his nasty splitter:

Casey Mize’s 7 K’s in just 3 innings of work last night.@PitchingNinja pic.twitter.com/GUWQqus9wz

— Griff (@deeptocenter) March 26, 2025

With the performance, Mize finishes the spring with a blazing 1.89 ERA over six appearances and four starts along with a flat 1.00 WHIP and 25 strikeouts in 19 innings pitched.

Jobe meanwhile posted a 3.86 ERA for the spring over five appearances and five starts with 13 with a WHIP of 0.98 and strikeouts in 16.1 innings pitched.

Both pitchers have unquestionably earned their roles on this Tigers roster and in the starting rotation and both are going to be absolutely critical towards the team experiencing success this season.

If Detroit is going to have anywhere near the kind of campaign they hope they are capable of, Jobe and Mize are going to be huge reasons as to why.