Detroit Tigers' Joey Wentz knows why he has struggled this season
Detroit Tigers left-hander Joey Wentz, who has a 6.65 ERA in 22 games, continues to receive big-league opportunities.
The Tigers need their starting pitchers to eat as many innings as possible throughout the final month of the season. Although Wentz is averaging just 4.3 innings per game, that's enough to keep him in the starting rotation. The 25-year-old, though, has struggled to execute pitches at a consistent rate.
"It's been difficult," Wentz said after Tuesday's 6-5 loss to the Cincinnati Reds, in which he allowed five runs across 2⅔ innings. "I haven't really done it all year. It's proven difficult, but I'll put one foot in front of the other and keep trying to get better."
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The Tigers have lost 10 of 11 games that Wentz has pitched in since the beginning of June, as well as 16 of his 22 games throughout the entire season. He is scheduled to pitch as many innings as possible Sunday against the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim, after right-handed reliever Miguel Díaz starts the game.
Wentz, acquired in a 2019 trade with the Atlanta Braves, owns a 6.65 ERA with 43 walks (9.9% walk rate) and 84 strikeouts (19.3% strikeout rate) over 93⅓ innings. He believes his four-seam fastball is the biggest problem.
"I think it is to do with some shape stuff of the fastball," Wentz said, "but I think if the shape is not going to be there, you got to get it on the edges. I haven't really done that, either. It's a couple details of the fastball that's making it easier to hit."
Tigers manager A.J. Hinch elaborated.
"Where it ends up on the pitch plot is something that pitchers have dug into a ton in the last couple of years," Hinch said, "to make sure their fastball shape is right, movement pattern is right and how you can tunnel different pitches. For him, it's the cutter and changeup. They're all sort of intertwined on what the hitter is going to see and how they're going to react."
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Opponents are hitting .371 with a .667 slugging percentage against Wentz's four-seam fastball, which averages 93.5 mph. Wentz needs his best fastball shape to maintain deceptiveness with his secondary pitches, but without that, his 86 mph cutter becomes less effective.
His fastball had a plus-1 run value over 32⅔ innings in the 2022 season, then a minus-20 run value over 93⅓ innings in the 2023 season. It grades out as the second-worst fastball in baseball, behind only Colorado Rockies right-hander Chris Flexen. His cutter had a plus-2 run value in 2022, then a minus-3 run value in 2023.
Wentz has allowed 17 of 21 homers on fastballs (11 homers) and cutters (six homers). He throws 42.2% fastballs, 25.5% cutters, 17.1% changeups and 15.2% curveballs. His changeup has been his best pitch.
"Usage pattern is just as important as the shape," Hinch said.
Casey Mize update
Tigers right-hander Casey Mize (right elbow sprain, lumbar strain) was on track to begin a rehab assignment, but after shutting down his second live batting practice session in late August, followed by a short rest period in early September, he won't begin a rehab assignment this season.
"The only discouraging part for Casey is the calendar," Hinch said. "That little break he took, that we gave him in September, is probably the toughest time to ramp things back up so fast with the end of the season coming."
The 26-year-old completed his third bullpen session Saturday since resuming his throwing program. He could throw a live batting practice session at some point during the Tigers' four-game series against the Oakland Athletics, from Thursday to Sunday, to wrap up the West Coast trip.
The Tigers have prioritized building the volume of Mize's pitch count before he begins his offseason program. If necessary, he could continue to increase volume after the Oct. 1 season finale.
"The day you guys saw him (end his live batting practice) was 20-some pitches," Hinch said. "The next time would have been 30-40 pitches. The next time would have been closer to 50 pitches. And then, at some point, you introduce games or at least the competition. The competition is going to run out, but from a conditioning standpoint, getting his volume up to where he feels good and we feel good is the goal."
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Detroit Tigers' Joey Wentz knows why he has struggled this season
