PLAINFIELD TOWNSHIP, Mich. (WOOD) — For young star pitcher Jackson Jobe, things are starting to trend in the right direction.
The 2021 No. 3 overall MLB draft pick has been highly praised for his arsenal of pitches at only 20 years old. However, things didn’t start perfectly for one of the Detroit Tigers’ top pitching prospects.
Beginning the 2022 season with the Flying Tigers, Jobe compiled a 4.52 ERA with 25 walks and 71 strikeouts in 61.2 innings of work. Hailing from Oklahoma and dominating at the college level, fans in Detroit expected immediate success. While the ERA wasn’t eye-popping, Jobe is started to make more progress in recent starts.
On Aug. 17, he went just 1 2/3 innings, allowing one run on one hit and three walks. However, his two starts before that, he allowed just three runs over 11 innings with 12 strikeouts to just one walk.
It was enough for the Tigers organization to promote him to High-A ball with the West Michigan Whitecaps. He is now with the team and ready to go.
“I’m so excited to be here. The atmosphere is unreal,” Jobe said. “I’m ready to win some games. I think I pitch on Wednesday and I’m looking forward to getting ready for Wednesday’s outing.”
Jobe is scheduled to make his debut Wednesday against the South Bend Cubs at LMCU Ballpark.
Manager Brayan Pena is thrilled to finally work with the young pitcher in person.
“It’ll be good he can finally get in here to get his feet wet and work to get better while having fun,” Pena said. “At the end of the day, he is still a young pitcher in this organization. But there is a reason we drafted him: We believe in his talent and we believe in what he can do someday in Detroit for us.”
Jobe joins many prospects already with the Whitecaps, including Jace Jung, Trei Cruz, Josh Crouch, Izaac Pacheco and others. The Whitecaps are currently playing for a playoff spot.
