Detroit Tigers observations: Torkelson’s debut, a tiki bar shot, much Baddoo about a dude

Detroit Free Press

Jeff Seidel | Detroit Free Press

BRADENTON, Fla. — Willi Castro took a shot at the tiki bar on Monday afternoon and then went on a leisurely stroll around the park.

OK. Relax. Not one of those shots.

Castro hit an impressive home run into a tiki bar beyond the right-center field fence — more than a 400-foot blast — helping the Detroit Tigers to a 6-1 win against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday at LECOM Park.

It was his second home run in three games.

Castro also hit a double.

Not a bad day — 2-for-2.

MORE FROM THE GAME: Tigers win Casey Mize’s first spring training start, 6-1, against Pirates

Shots all around.

Tork’s first game

You wanna know how good Spencer Torkelson is? He appeared on second base, making his spring training debut, without picking up his bat.

Torkelson, who has recovered from a cut on his finger on his right hand, got into his first game as a pinch runner on Monday. He finished the game playing third base.

Torkelson had one plate appearance, taking a couple of strong cuts before earning a seven-pitch walk.

MORE FROM SEIDEL: Here’s when Riley Greene, Spencer Torkelson could make their Tigers debuts

The funny thing?

The scoreboard radar gun was on the fritz and showed the pitches were in the 150 mph range.

A wee bit off.

Torkelson scored on a JaCoby Jones double.

Hinch said he plans to continue to use Torkelson.

“I have a start for him later this week,” Hinch said. “I’ll be creative, getting him in the game.”

Any game action that Torkelson gets this spring is a tremendous benefit, just getting him comfortable, not to mention, as Hinch did, facing “higher-end competition.”

“This camp will be good for him still,” Hinch said.

Much Baddoo about …

It will hard for the Tigers to keep Rule 5 draftee Ail Baddoo.

Not unless one of the outfielders gets hurt.

But Baddoo has made a strong first impression. He had a solid opposite-field RBI double on Tuesday.

He is just 22 years old and is 6-foot-1 and 215 pounds. He is bound to get bigger, stronger and produce more power. In short, he just looks like a talented player.

You have to give him credit: It’s still early but he’s off to a strong start.

The future warming up

One of the coolest moments at this game actually happened before it started.

During warm ups.

Casey Mize was warming up with catcher Dillon Dingler, playing catch in the outfield.

Not far away, Torkelson and Riley Greene were playing catch.

Yeah, not too hard to think of them all player together in Detroit.

Mize started and pitched two scoreless innings, striking out three batters and walking three.

“He threw the ball well,” Hinch said. “I think he got a little bit excited to try to punch a few guys out and got a little erratic late. He did a good job of getting to two strikes.”

Then, Hinch added something interesting.

“He has the ability of any of our guys to be the most unpredictable given that he’s got a lot of weapons and when to use them,” Hinch said.

MORE FROM SEIDEL: Watching the Tigers with Riley Greene’s dad unearths great stories

The long and Short of it

The Tigers are still missing second baseman Jonathan Schoop, who has visa issues.

That has opened up some innings in the infield, and Zack Short is making the most of it.

Short has shown his versatility, starting Tuesday’s game at second base and then moving over to shortstop.

[ With dark days behind him, Zack Short ready to blossom ]

He also showed that he has some pop, hitting a double.

He continues to impress.

Struggling catcher has sense of humor

Jake Rogers is in a fight for the backup catcher job.

But he’s had a rough start, with four at-bats and four strikeouts.

But the cool thing is, he still has his sense of humor.

“I just heard him talking about it,” Hinch said. “He said the object’s to hit the white ball. He hasn’t done it yet. So he’s at least poking fun of himself. But … contact is your friend and he’s gonna continue to get out there.”

Hinch plans to continue to play him.

“I’ll play him over the next couple days and get him get him something put in play,” he said. “I’ll make him feel a lot better, but it’s obviously been a rough couple of bats.”

It was interesting how Hinch dealt with Rogers’ struggles with comedy, making light of the situation, almost taking pressure off Rogers with the media, instead of dwelling on it.

It shows how he will manage this team, trying to take heat off of his players, protecting them as best he can.

Contact Jeff Seidel: jseidel@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @seideljeff. To read his recent columns, go to freep.com/sports/jeff-seidel/.

 

Articles You May Like

Wednesday Open Thread: Make your bold predictions for 2024
2024 Player preview: Kerry Carpenter looks to build on a strong debut
Series Preview: Tigers open up 2024 MLB season on road at Chicago White Sox
Jace Jung promoted to Triple-A as Mud Hens announce 2024 starting roster
2024 Tigers season preview: Jack Flaherty looks primed after work in the Tigers pitching lab

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *