TMLR Recap 6/17/25: Serwa Sterling, SeaWolves Surging

We had a full slate of Tigers minor-league action on Tuesday night, with plenty of playoff implications. Also there was a very stupid game in Toledo. Read all about it below!

Toledo Mud Hens (Triple-A)

Final: Toledo 9, St. Paul 8 (11 innings)

Top Performers: 

Hao-Yu Lee: 3-for-6, HR(5), 3B, 2RBI, SB(9)

Justyn-Henry Malloy: 1-for-3, 3BB, K, R

Brewer Hicklen: 4-for-5, 3B, 2B, K, R, 2RBI

Pitchers:

Troy Melton: 1.2IP 6H 7ER 3BB 5K

Dylan Smith: IP H ER 3KB

Drew Sommers: 2IP H ER 2BB 3K

Beau Brieske: IP H BB K

Riley Unroe: 2IP H 0ER, W

Game Notes: The Mud Hens limped into Minnesota after suffering a six-game sweep at home last week. But the Saints were riding a five-game losing streak of their own. Something had to give. And in the end it was the Mud Hens battling through some adversity to snap their streak. Hao-Yu Lee kicked off the game with a blistering solo home run to left center. But rather than kickstart a big blowout win for Toledo, Lee’s homer was merely the first tally in a back-and-forth affair. The Saints surged ahead on a 2-run homer in the bottom of the 1st, only for the Hens to move back ahead after an Akil Baddoo double and a stolen base + error.

St. Paul tied it again. Toledo starter Troy Melton couldn’t put hitters away in the 2nd inning, and he was pulled after reaching his 30-pitch limit. Toledo retook the lead on a Brewer Hicklen triple. The Saints tied it again in the bottom of the 3rd. The Mud Hens scored twice in the 5th. St. Paul tied it in the bottom of the inning. The score remained 6-6 until the 9th inning when Ryan Kreidler hit a massive solo home run to put Toledo on top. Then Ricky Vanasco walked the bases loaded and St. Paul tied it, again.

And so the teams went into extra innings. Michael Tonkin got a pair of big strikeouts in the 10th, but not before Lee put the Hens ahead with an RBI triple to right center. Toledo was out of pitchers, so they went to infielder Riley Unroe to close out the game. We’ve seen that before this season. Unroe got the first two outs, but — you’ll never guess — the Saints tied it again. Onward to the 11th, where Jace Jung smacked an RBI double to center to make it a 9-8 Hens lead. And then, stunningly, Unroe pitched a scoreless 11th to pick up his second win of the season. He now has as many wins as pitchers Dietrich Enns, Lael Lockhart, and Matt Manning. Baseball!

Position player Riley Unroe pitches the final two frames and the Mud Hens win 9-8 in 11 innings. pic.twitter.com/hc9NExYhYU

— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) June 18, 2025

Erie SeaWolves (Double-A)

Final: Erie 6, Chesapeake 1

Top Performers:

Trei Cruz: 2-for-4, 3B, 2B, K, 2R, RBI

Thayron Liranzo: 1-for-4, 3K, R, RBI

Max Anderson: 3-for-4, 2 2B, R, RBI

Justice Bigbie: 1-for-4, HR(7), K, 3RBI

Pitchers:

Kenny Serwa: 5IP H 0R 0BB 5K

Tim Naughton: 2IP H 4K

Andrew Magno: IP H K

Game Notes: The SeaWolves entered tonight’s action just 1/2 game ahead of Akron in the Eastern League Southwest Division. They control their own destiny, and they put pressure on Akron with a complete victory over the Baysox. Trei Cruz kicked things off in style, leading off the first with a triple to the gap. Max Anderson followed with an RBI double, and Erie led 1-0. The Wolves scored again in the 3rd on a double from Cruz and a sharp single from Thayron Liranzo. Anderson followed with his 19th double of the season, and then the big blow came in the form of a 3-run homer from Justice Bigbie.

Meanwhile, Kenny Serwa was excellent. His knuckleball was dancing around the zone, and he allowed just one single over five scoreless innings, using just 62 pitches. Tim Naughton followed with two strong innings of relief, striking out four. The Baysox did plate one run against Ryan Boyer in the 8th, but Andrew Magno worked a scoreless 9th, with a little help from his defense. The SeaWolves move to 42-22 on the season, and their magic number is 5.

Justice Bigbie crushes a 3-run homer and the SeaWolves take a 6-0 lead in the 3rd. @SamLebowitz_ on the call. pic.twitter.com/o5AxCaIwAH

— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) June 17, 2025

West Michigan (High-A)

Final: Wisconsin 10, West Michigan 2

Top Performers:

Kevin McGonigle: 1-for-3, 2B, R

Josue Briceño: 1-for-2, RBI

Austin Murr: 1-for-3, HR(2)

Pitchers:

Alex Lange (rehab): IP K

Tyler Mattison (rehab): IP 2BB 2K

Freddy Pacheco (rehab): 0.1 IP 3H 3ER 2BB

Game Notes: Well, it’s a good thing the Whitecaps have already clinched a playoff berth, because this one was ugly. It didn’t necessarily start that way, with Kevin McGonigle hitting yet another double, and Josue Briceño singling him home. Wisconsin tied it up immediately, with Marco Dinges leading off the 2nd with a solo homer. Austin Murr crushed a solo homer in the 2nd to put West Michigan back on top, but from there it was all Timber Rattlers.

Wisconsin plated two runs in each of the 4th, 5th, and 6th innings, and then three runs in the 8th. Meanwhile, West Michigan did nothing at all. McGonigle walked in the 3rd, then 11 straight Whitecaps hitters were retired before John Peck singled. The best takeaways from the game were a couple of rehab appearances. Alex Lange worked a clean first inning in his first appearance in just over a year. And Tyler Mattison walked a pair of batters, but he also struck out a pair, and his fastball touched 95 MPH.

Here’s Alex Lange’s inning of work. 13 pitches, 7 for strikes, 3 swings and misses. pic.twitter.com/x3KM4FnCYA

— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) June 17, 2025

Lakeland (Low-A)

Final: Lakeland 5, Fort Myers 1 (suspended in bottom of 3rd)

Game Notes: Lakeland got to Mighty Muscles starter very early in this one. Woody Hadeen singled, Jackson Strong walked, and then Franyerber Montilla brought them both home with a double. Montilla stole third and then scored on a balk, and the Flying Tigers were up 3-0 before Fort Myers recorded an out. The Muscles scratched across one run in the 2nd, but Montilla manufactured another run in the 3rd. And then Ricardo Hurtado made it 5-1 with a sharp single up the middle. Fort Myers threatened to score early in the bottom of the 3rd, but then lighting and rain came, and the game was suspended. It is set to be completed tomorrow. Meanwhile Tampa and Clearwater both won, so Lakeland’s division lead shrank.

Franyerber Montilla singles, steals two bases, and scores on a throwing error. pic.twitter.com/Q4c22kAK8N

— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) June 17, 2025

Tigers Rookie Ball Roundup

It wasn’t a pretty day in the Tigers rookie ranks, as all three teams took a loss. And things got quite ugly in the Dominican Summer League, in particular.

FCL Tigers

Final:  Tigers 4, Blue Jays 1 (7 innings)

Game Notes: The FCL Tigers moved into sole possession of first place in the FCL North with a tidy win over the Blue Jays. Zach MacDonald led off the bottom of the first with a double and later scored on a 2-out error. The Jays tied it on a leadoff homer in the 3rd inning, but that was the only damage against Tigers starter Wuilberth Mendez. The score stayed knotted until the bottom of the 5th when rehabbing Cole Turney launched a 3-run homer. Aaron Haase and Shay Timmer tossed three scoreless innings of relief to close out the win.

DSL Tigers1

Final: Pirates Black 18, Tigers 11 (7 innings)

Game Notes: Ahhh, the DSL. The Tigers jumped out to an early lead on solo home runs from Samuell Sanchez and Santiago Pinto. Then the Pirates scored 13 runs over the next two innings. That’s the sort of thing that happens when you allow eight singles, four walks, three doubles, two wild pitches, an error, and a homer. And then the Tigers had their turn, scoring six runs in the bottom of the 3rd when the Pirates forgot how to play baseball. The Tigers scratched off three more runs to make it a 15-11 game, but the Pirates got those runs back in the top of the 7th to reach the final score.

Samuell Sanchez gets the DSL Tigs1 on the board early with a leadoff homer to right center. It’s his 2nd home run of the season. pic.twitter.com/OEAf3xs8b4

— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) June 17, 2025

DSL Tigers2

Final: Tigers 14, Phillies White 4

Game Notes: The Phillies were charged with eight errors in this game. Eight. Rookie ball is a tough watch. It started early, with Cris Rodriguez reaching on a throwing error to begin the game, and later coming around to score. But it was still a 1-0 game into the 4th inning. That’s when the Tigers scored four runs thanks in part to to three errors and three wild pitches. Another wild pitch brough home the Tigers’ 6th run in the 5th inning, and then in the 6th Sterling Bazil brought in three runs on his first professional extra-base hit. Tigers starter Carlos Rodriguez was excellent (5IP, 2H, 0R, BB, 4K) and the Tigers coasted to an easy victory.

Cris Rodríguez reaches on an error, steals 2nd base, and scores on a pickoff play to give the DSL Tigs2 an early 1-0 lead. pic.twitter.com/XrdgTYYN8J

— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) June 17, 2025