Farm system
Harris has not called on the Detroit Tigers farm system for any significant level of assistance. Only four first-year players have made contributions during the first half, and only two of them are still on the active roster.
Those two are starter Reese Olson and reliever Brendan White.
Since being called up in early June, Olson has gotten regular rotation work. He’s 1-2 with a 4.78 ERA across 26 innings, stats that probably won’t have him in the running for Rookie of the Year.
White is a reliever who’s in his second stint with the Tigers. A last-ditch, everybody-else-is-tired option, he’s pitched 10 innings in seven games with a 5.23 ERA. Presumably that will improve, or else.
Joey Wentz may eventually be the guy to watch, although he hasn’t shown it this season. Making the team out of spring camp, Wentz started 15 games and covered 71 innings before his 1-9 record and 6.78 ERA prompted the Detroit front office to conclude that he might for the present anyway be better suited for Toledo.
Since the Tigers obviously think he has potential, he’s likely to get at least one more shot.
Just to complete the yearbook picture the fourth rookie is outfielder Ryan Kreidler, who was batting .111 when he went on the injured list.