LAKELAND, Fla. — The Detroit Tigers are at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium for an intrasquad scrimmage at 10:30 a.m. Thursday featuring the franchise’s top prospects.
The two groups are Team Horton, wearing gray uniforms, and Team Trammell, wearing white uniforms. There is one unofficial umpire (director of coaching Ryan Sienko) stationed behind home plate.
Right-hander Beau Brieske received the start for Team Trammell; right-hander Garrett Hill started for Team Horton.
Team Horton: Daniel Cabrera (CF), Parker Meadows (LF), Dillon Dingler (C), Josh Lester (1B), Izaac Pacheco (3B), Colt Keith (DH), Roberto Campos (RF), Luis Carpio (2B), Cristian Santana (SS), Jon Rosoff (DH).
Team Trammell: Riley Greene (CF), Spencer Torkelson (1B), Ryan Kreidler (SS), Andre Lipcius (3B), Gage Workman (DH), Eric De La Rosa (RF), Jack Lopez (2B), Jacob Robson (LF), Eliezer Alfonzo (DH), Josh Crouch (C).
Tigers insider Evan Petzold is at Tiger Town for the game, which features Spencer Torkelson, Riley Greene and other players. Follow along below for his live observations as the action progresses:
Observations
First inning
TOP (HORTON): Brieske took the mound Team Trammell, and he worked a perfect first inning. The last batter of the frame, Dillon Dingler, hit a rocket off Brieske’s left leg. Lipcius made a fantastic play at third base for the third out. But Brieske limped off the field and was greeted outside the dugout by director of pitching Gabe Ribas. The first two batters, Daniel Cabrera and Parker Meadows, were set down easily.
BOTTOM (TRAMMELL): Hill faced the Tigers’ three best prospects, and he rolled through them. He retired Greene (groundout to first base), Torkelson (groundout to shortstop) and Ryan Kreidler (flyout to right field). Torkelson grounded out on a 3-0 pitch.
SCORE: Team Horton 0, Team Trammell 0.
Second inning
TOP (HORTON): Brieske didn’t return to the game, but he walked (without a limp) to the bullpens with Ribas. Right-hander Ty Madden replaced him and worked around Lester’s second-pitch single by producing a 4-6-3 double play. But Keith drew a walk on a 3-2 pitch, and Campos produced an infield single. The inning was called with two outs because Madden reached 20 pitches.
BOTTOM (TRAMMELL): For his second inning, Hill ran into trouble. Lipcius crushed a home run over the right-field fence. After retiring Workman, Hill plunked De La Rosa with a pitch that brushed his jersey. De La Rosa made quick work with his speed, stealing second base and advancing to third on a poor throw from Dingler. He came around to score on a sacrifice fly from Lopez. Robson struck out looking to end the inning.
SCORE: Team Horton 0, Team Trammell 2.
Third inning
TOP (HORTON): Team Horton stormed back in the top of the third inning, spoiling Madden’s performance on the mound. Keith and Campos started on the bases, since they reached safely before the top of the second ended due to Madden’s pitch count. Carpio singled to loaded the bases, and Santana, the Tigers’ 18-year-old phenom, drove in Team Horton’s first run with a full-count walk. Rosoff grounded into a 6-4-3 double play, but it pushed home a second run. Then, Cabrera drilled a ground-rule double to the right-center gap, giving Team Horton a 3-2 lead. The inning ended when Madden walked Meadows.
BOTTOM (TRAMMELL): Right-hander Logan Shore, one of the veteran pitchers in minicamp, relieved Hill for the third inning. Alfonzo grounded out to shortstop, and Crouch followed with an infield single to third base. Pacheco tried to bare-hand the slow roller, but he couldn’t come up with the ball. Shore walked Greene, and the inning was called.
SCORE: Team Horton 3, Team Trammell 2.
Fourth inning
TOP (HORTON): Top pitching prospect Jackson Jobe made in his first outing at Joker Marchant Stadium. He fell behind 2-0 and gave up a single to both Dingler and Lester, and both hitters produced singles. Jobe’s friend, Pacheco, grounded into a 4-6-3 double play with a smooth defensive transfer from Lopez to Kreidler to Torkelson. Jobe walked Keith to end the inning after 17 pitches. Jobe did not return for the fifth, finishing with two hits and one walk allowed. He is still cleaning up his command, especially with his fastball.
BOTTOM (TRAMMELL): Team Trammell took back the lead, rocking Shore for three runs. From the previous inning, the squad put two runners on base: Alfonzo at second base and Greene at first base. Torkelson flied out to center field, advancing Alfonzo to third base. With runners on the corners, Kreidler hit a grounder to shortstop. This should have been an easy out, but Santana let the ball roll under his glove for an error and a 3-3 game. Lipcius and Workman continued the rally with RBI singles for 5-3 advantage. After Workman’s single to right field, the inning was called with two outs.
SCORE: Team Horton 3, Team Trammell 5.
Fifth inning
TOP (HORTON): RJ Petit, the 6-foot-8, 280-pound right-hander, pitched for Team Trammell. At this point, Team Horton began switching players in its lineup. Petit walked Jose De La Cruz to begin the frame. Carpio laced a grounder down the third-base line, but the ball deflected off Lipcius’ glove and into foul territory. De La Cruz advanced to third base, while Carpio was thrown out trying to take second on the error. Santana worked a one-out walk, then stole second base. Team Horton had two runners in scoring position when Petit struck out Cooper Johnson. The inning ended with two outs.
BOTTOM (TRAMMELL): In his first Joker Marchant Stadium appearance, Kuzia worked a perfect inning for Team Horton. Kuzia, who previously pitched in the San Diego Padres’ organization, retired De La Rosa (strikeout), Lopez (groundout to shortstop) and Robson (pop out in foul territory on third-base side).
SCORE: Team Horton 3, Team Trammell 5.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @EvanPetzold. Read more on the Detroit Tigers and sign up for our Tigers newsletter.