LAKELAND, Fla. — It all started with a Zoom call — a pitch for a pitcher. During the offseason, the Tigers were courting left-hander
Dietrich Enns , a 33-year-old pitcher who started
at Central Michigan and broke into MLB in 2017. The Tigers showed him a PowerPoint presentation that broke down his strengths and weaknesses, detailed how he could fit in the organization and ways he could improve. “I was really impressed by that,” Enns said last week of the Tigers' in-depth analysis. The Tigers put several key members of their development team on the call: Ryan Garko, vice president and assistant general manager; Gabe Ribas, the director of pitching; and Dylan Axelrod, pitching performance and integration coordinator. “It’s the first time I’ve seen that,” Enns said, of basically getting a sales pitch on how a team could help a player improve. That’s saying something, considering Enns has
traveled around the world — quite literally — as a pitcher. “They showed me what I could work on to be a solid pitcher at the major league level for them,” Enns said. That presentation — not to mention all the research, analysis and planning behind it — offers a glimpse into how the Tigers keep finding pitchers and making them better. The Tigers have invested in building a pitching department; and it’s paying off. After success stories like Michael Lorenzen and
Jack Flaherty — taking broken pitchers and making them right again — the Tigers are developing a reputation as a place where pitchers can go and get better. Enns agreed with the Tigers' assessment. “We're on the same page from the get-go,” Enns said. So, he signed a minor league contract that included a non-roster invitation to spring training; and he will earn a $1.3 million salary if he makes the majors in the 2025 season. Since then? All he has done is impress. On Friday, Enns threw 2⅔ innings against the Toronto Blue Jays, striking out four and walking two, while not allowing any hits or runs. “He's been good,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said Saturday morning. “He pounds the strike zone. He's got a little funky look to him. … He's a pro's pro.”
Around the world and back again
Hinch described Enns perfectly. “He's worldly,” Hinch said. Quite literally. The magic in Enms’ left arm has taken him on a journey from Mount Pleasant to the New York Yankees, where he played with Aaron Judge in the minors. To the Minnesota Twins, where he made his MLB debut in 2017. To the Tully Monsters, an Indy ball team in Joliet, Illinois, which was cool because he was able to stay with his parents. To the Tampa Bay Rays, where he made the big leagues again in 2021. To Japan for two years. To Korea for a season. “He's been around,” Hinch said. “He's not a young kid.” In the past 14 years, Enns has pitched in 318 games, starting 155, while climbing from CMU to the big leagues. He has racked up 1,367⅔ innings, striking out 1,263 while walking 476. I mean, that’s not exactly a small sample size. "It's been a really cool journey,” Enns said. “I’m very grateful to still be playing this game, because I love pitching, and I feel like I'm still getting better. So, I have a lot to give, and a lot left in the tank.”
Just pound the zone
Even though Enns is new to this organization, he has found he speaks the Tigers’ language. “What they preach here is just pound the zone,” he said. “They just want me to be in the zone and kind of attack. Keep it pretty simple." So, when he walked the first batter he faced on Friday, it bothered him. “Was eating at me for a while,” he said. But his cutter was particularly sharp and he had a fantastic outing. “Being able to throw (the cutter) behind in the count and ahead in the count for strikes,” he said. He has several traits Hinch likes: Enns has multiple pitches that can get a righty out, works efficiently and “has a starter’s mix,” Hinch said. But there is something new in Enns' repertoire: He has developed a new changeup. The Tigers showed him a new grip and he throws it like a fastball. “I kind of scrapped the one I was throwing, because it's more of like a split change variation,” Enns said. “It’s something I've been working on, and I think it'll help in the long run and help this year. It's fairly simple. Just throw it just like your fastball.” That’s why the Tigers wanted him. That’s why they courted him. Because he has experience and pounds the zone. But there was something else. The potential for growth and development. It turns out, you can teach old lefties new tricks.
