We were on site at LMCU Ballpark to catch the West Michigan Whitecaps 2023 home opener, a 1-0 victory over the Fort Wayne TinCaps. It was a brisk game played in brisk weather, completed in exactly two hours, with temperatures hovering around 40 degrees Fahrenheit. Here’s what we saw:
Jairo Iriarte – Yes, we’re starting with Fort Wayne’s starting pitcher. He was probably the most impressive prospect in the game, and it may help color some of what we talk about later. Iriarte came out firing fastballs between 94-96 mph, and he mixed in an above-average slider at 83-85 mph, and a pretty dastardly changeup at 90-91 mph.
He began the game by striking out both Danny Serretti and Jace Jung on just seven pitches, and he allowed one run on two hits over three innings. He struck out six, walked one, and induced 13 swings and misses on 51 pitches. His fastball wasn’t particularly lively in terms of movement, and he lost the zone a bit in his final inning. But Iriarte has a big-league arm.
Position Players
Danny Serretti – Serretti was blown away with elevated fastballs in his first plate appearance. But Irarte’s command failed him in the 3rd inning and Serretti refused to chase, working a five-pitch walk. He pulled the ball on the ground in his final two at-bats, with one a hard hit ball to first base. All four plate appearances came from the left side of the plate. He still looks very comfortable in the batter’s box, and he played a solid shortstop, with really only one moderately difficult play that saw him quickly range back to the grass on a blooper.
Danny Serretti ranges back to catch this bloop and save a run. pic.twitter.com/uxze9fvRQh
— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) April 6, 2023
Jace Jung – It was a rough day for Jung. He struck out swinging in his first three at-bats, and hit a weak grounder to second base in his final AB. Iriarte attacked him with backfoot sliders and elevated fastballs. Reliever Nick Thwaits got him with slower, more vertical breaking balls in the dirt. Jung finished the night with seven swings and misses.
Eliezer Alfonzo – Alfonzo had a very nice day, on both sides of the ball. He was one of just two players to square up Iriarte, driving a 95-mph fastball to the left-center gap for a double.
Eliezer Alfonzo takes 95 and drives it deep to left center for a double. pic.twitter.com/a5UbkZppFV
— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) April 6, 2023
Alfonzo’s receiving has improved noticeably, as he caught and framed a variety of arm angles with little difficulty. He also got out of his crouch to make a nice defensive play on a dribbler in front of the plate, and we recorded a 2.03 pop time for him on our stopwatch.
Izaac Pacheco – Pacheco went 0-for-3 with a pair of strikeouts in his debut. Iriarte got him with a slider inside, and then Thwaits got him to expand on a fastball away, though that was immediately after Pacheco took an inside heater and drove it about 400 feet into foul territory. But in this game Pacheco stood out most for his defense. He made a nice play to snag a grounder along the foul line, and later he ranged far to his left, spun around, and fired a strike to first.
Izaac Pacheco made another very nice play on defense. This time ranging toward second base. pic.twitter.com/N45cwD3wNk
— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) April 7, 2023
Roberto Campos – Campos didn’t seem particularly fazed in his High-A debut. He adopted an opposite-field approach in his first two at-bats, hitting hard grounders both times, one for a single. Campos struck out looking on a breaking ball in his final plate appearance. He looked smooth in right field, and he’s an athletic mover who turned in average run times.
Ben Malgeri – Malgeri provided the lone run of the game, turning on an inside fastball from Iriarte and driving it deep over the left field wall. He shows above-average bat speed, but his power was a bit surprising. Malgeri struck out in his next two at-bats, struggling in particular with sliders away from him. He showed good range and speed in center field.
Ben Malgeri gets the Whitecaps on the board with this home run to left. pic.twitter.com/JUFkEMqWiL
— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) April 6, 2023
Whitecaps Pitchers
Wilkel Hernandez – Hernandez first reached West Michigan in 2018, but his route back to the Whitecaps has been circuitous. His numbers were good on the day — 4IP | 2H | 0R | BB | 2K — but his stuff was underwhelming. Hernandez sat 90-93 mph with his sinker, while occasionally adding in a four-seam fastball in the same velocity range. His slider sat in the mid-80s, his changeup was slightly harder, topping out at 87 mph, and he threw a few curveballs in the low-70s. He worked downhill and did a good job keeping the ball on the ground, but none of Hernandez’s secondary offerings flashed better than below average.
Blake Holub – The first reliever off the bench was Blake Holub, who provided hitters with a much different look. His fastball sat at 93-94 mph, but it comes out of an over-the-top slot with 19 inches of vertical break and cutter-like action. The heater is his primary pitch, but he also mixed in a few low-80s sliders. He induced three swings and misses, but hitters also fouled off 8 of his 25 pitches.
Cristhian Tortosa – The 24-year-old Tortosa is getting his first taste of High-A after spending six seasons at the lower levels. It’s not hard to see why the organization hasn’t given up on him, because he’s a tall, well-built southpaw whose fastball sits at 93-95 mph with a free-and-easy delivery. He threw exclusively fastballs, earning one swinging strikeout and getting some help from Pacheco’s spinning putout.
Jack Anderson – Anderson worked a quick, 10-pitch inning, mostly firing low-80s sliders, and mixing in a few fastballs at 90-91. His pitches seem to play up slightly thanks to a little deception in his delivery.
Gabe Sequeira – Sequeira is another member of the Whitecaps bullpen with an unusual delivery. In his case it’s upper-80s fastballs and low-80s sliders delivered at a nearly sidearm angle from the left side. He allowed one hit, but struck out two and got top prospect Jackson Merrill to fly out harmlessly.
Tyler Mattison – Mattison has the look of a potential late-inning reliever in the big leagues. His fastball doesn’t wow from a velocity standpoint, sitting in the 91-94 mph range in this outing, but it shows plus spin rates in the 2,500 RPM range and it comes out from an almost direct overhead arm slot. He also flashed a low-80s breaking ball and a mid-80s changeup with good fading action.
Jayden Hewitt