Tigers needed some farmland pitching muscle -- and appear to have gotten it in Witherspoon and Jacobs
A pair of prime-time college starters were the Tigers second- and third-round picks last July. Both are showing at their A-ball stopovers why Detroit liked two pitchers who are moving quickly.
Heading into 2026, the strength of the Tigers’ minor league system leaned heavily toward position players.
But a pair of 2025 draftees are doing their best to close the mound-gap.
Malachi Witherspoon was the Tigers’ second-rounder last July out of the University of Oklahoma, and in just over 25 Low-A innings this season, he’s been electric: 3.51 ERA, 29.9% strikeout rate, 5.6% walks, .235 batting average against, 36% whiff rate.
A heavy, high-spin sinker that averages 96 mph is Witherspoon’s primary pitch (40%), and helps explain an above-average 56% ground-ball rate. That ability to spin transfers not only to his four-seamer, which he leans on about 20% of the time, but also to his trio of breaking balls.
Witherspoon’s cutter has given Low-A hitters fits and is a legitimate swing-and-miss pitch. It averages around 2,700 rpm of spin, and in 2026 has an elite 55% whiff rate. The 6-foot-3 right-hander’s less-used slider and curveball are also weapons, and in a smaller sample come with similar metrics.
What’s surprised prospect-watchers the most has been Witherspoon’s improved control. After a 9% walk rate in his final year as a Sooner, Witherspoon, thanks to some hard work and pro-level instruction, this season has cut his walks to 5.6%.
If that progress continues, Witherspoon figures to soon be on his way to High-A West Michigan, and may also crack some Top 100 prospects lists.
Ben Jacobs was the Tigers’ next choice in last year’s draft, arriving from Arizona State, and along with Witherspoon may be the story of the year so far in the Tigers’ minors.
