MediterraneanGrocery Wholesalers in Detroit, MI

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Fall League pitching matchups don’t get any bigger than what went down Friday night at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick with the two highest-ranked hurlers on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospects list in attendance at the Arizona Fall League squaring off.

In a league traditionally steeped in offensive prowess, all eyes were firmly on the mound as Surprise tabbed Ricky Tiedemann (TOR No. 1, MLB No. 31) opposite Salt River’s Jackson Jobe (DET No. 3, MLB No. 54). The contest marked the culmination of their respective Fall League journeys after four starts apiece. Both end their seasons healthy, having made emphatic statements about the electric nature of their repertoire during their time in the desert.

Let’s take a look at what made this momentous matchup -- an eventual 7-1 Saguaros win -- a memorable one.

Key pitch of Jobe’s 1st inning:

When leadoff batter Jacob Hurtubise (Reds) took a cut at the second offering of the game, his bat clipped Salt River catcher Tyler Tolve’s mitt, granting him first base. He would steal second and come around to score, putting an unearned run on Jobe’s ledger out of the gate.

“I've spent time in the Complex League, [Single-A], High-A, got a little taste of Double-A -- so I've thrown a good bit,” Jobe said. “I've seen a lot of stuff this year and last year. Last year, that probably rattles me a little bit. But I felt just fine out there today.”

Key pitch of Tiedemann’s 1st inning:

With fellow Top 100 prospect Jace Jung (Tigers) digging in with a runner in scoring position, a left-on-left battle ensued. The count went full before Tiedemann ripped off a 96.2 mph fastball -- his second-fastest pitch of the night -- for his first strikeout, ending the threat.

Key pitch of Jobe’s 2nd inning:

Jobe got 14 swings on his four-seam fastball Friday and nine resulted in whiffs, including a 2-0 offering to Dasan Brown (TOR No. 29). After reading that Brown’s bat was lagging behind his heater, he proceeded to fire two more such offerings across for a punchout.

“After getting some swings and misses early, one hundred percent it definitely gives me more confidence to go to [my heater],” Jobe said.

Key pitch of Tiedemann’s 2nd inning:

With a runner in scoring position and behind in the count 3-0, Tiedemann went back to his bread and butter: his heater. But while he averaged 94.1 mph on his four-seamer over the course of the start, he took something off to help load the count. Then he reared back for 95.8 -- a 3.1 mph increase from the previous fastball -- to zoom it past Keshawn Ogans (Braves).

“Sometimes I'm trying to finish guys so I gotta put a little bit more into it,” Tiedemann said. “But I think my biggest thing right now is just being in the zone and throwing strikes. And as long as I get ahead of guys, that's where I find the most success.”

Key pitch of Jobe’s 3rd inning:

Armed with a new offering -- his cutter -- Jobe found even more success down the stretch in 2023. He deftly deployed the pitch during the AFL, including freezing Cameron Cauley (TEX No. 13) with it for his fifth strikeout of the night. Conversely, it also accounted for the lone ball put in play off Jobe to exceed a 92 mph exit velocity, a two-run homer from Damiano Palmegiani (TOR No. 18).

“It's been getting better, honestly, over each outing,” Jobe said. “I feel like I’m kind of trying to figure out where and when to use it best.”

Key pitch of Tiedemann’s 3rd inning:

Salt River batters took cuts at 15 of Tiedemann’s sweepers Friday, swinging and missing nine times. One such occasion came to conclude this frame when he got Sterlin Thompson (COL No. 6) to chase down and away out of the zone, polishing off his lone three up, three down frame of the night.

Key pitch of Jobe’s 4th inning:

MLB’s ninth-ranked right-handed pitching prospect capped his 2023 campaign by firing a 95.3 mph heater up and out of the zone that had Abimelec Ortiz (TEX No. 14) waving at the offering.

Key pitch of Tiedemann’s 4th inning:

After retiring the leadoff batter, an error, single and walk loaded the bases with one out. He got ahead of Ogans with a first-pitch heater before breaking out his newest -- and fastest developing -- tool, a low-80s changeup. He got an infield tapper that developed into a tailor-made, inning-ending double play.

“I think I've grown a little bit more comfortable with it rather than during the season,” Tiedemann said. “Having that changeup in your back pocket to get the double play in a situation like that, bases loaded, is huge for the game and huge for momentum for your team.”

Key pitch of Tiedemann’s 5th inning:

Having yielded his lone run of the outing earlier in the frame, MLB’s second-ranked left-handed pitching prospect faced two runners on with Jung digging in. Tiedemann snapped off a 1-0 sweeper that landed at the bottom of the zone for a called strike ... but not before Jung enacted a challenge via the ABS system. The call stood and Tiedemann remained in control, eventually retiring Jung on a popout.

“I think it's definitely a learning experience,” Tiedemann said. “You gotta learn how to pitch with it and kind of use it to your advantage. ... Basically taking away their challenges by the [fifth] inning really helps your team as well. So if you can kind of finesse it in that way, it'll help your [relievers] as well.”

Jobe: Pitch usage: FB (31), CUT (18), SWP (13), CH (11) Swings-and-misses: 12 Strikeouts: 7 Max velo: 98.3 mph

Tiedemann: Pitch usage: FB (39), SWP (33), CH (7) Swings-and-misses: 14 Strikeouts: 5 Max velo: 96.3 mph

Jobe in AFL:

3-1, 2.87 ERA, .233 BAA, 1.21 WHIP, 19 K’s, 15 2/3 IP

“This is definitely the highest level of competition I’ve faced,” Jobe said. “So to be able to come out here and have some success, that definitely gives me some confidence [going] into next year.

“This is what I want: to play against the best guys.”

Tiedemann in AFL:

Detroit Red Wings Alex DeBrincat believes everything worked out for the best after a much-publicized exit from the Ottawa Senators this past summer.

On Saturday, DeBrincat will make his return to Ottawa, where he spent the 2022-23 campaign. On July 9, he was traded to the Red Wings in exchange for forward Dominik Kubalík, prospect Donovan Sebrango, a conditional 2024 first-round draft pick and Detroit's 2024 fourth-round selection. An restricted free agent, he inked a four-year, $31.5 million contract with Detroit.

Amidst the numerous rumours of why he didn't want to be with the Senators, DeBrincat clarifies he never made a formal trade request.

“No, I never asked for a trade,” DeBrincat told The Athletic. “I said I wasn’t going to sign long-term. And they took that as writing on the wall.”

Originally drafted 39th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks at the 2016 NHL Draft, DeBrincat had two 40+ goal seasons as a member of the Blackhawks. Deciding to go for a full roster rebuild, Chicago dealt the Farmington Hills, Mich., native to Ottawa in exchange for the seventh- and 39th-picks in the 2022 NHL Draft and a 2024 third-round selection.

While the 25-year-old scored 27 goals with 66 points in 82 games in his lone season in Ottawa, he was a minus-31 and ultimately it wasn't the right fit for either side.

“There’s not necessarily a bad guy here. Tough decisions needed to be made and we chose what we chose,” DeBrincat said. “Maybe the stars didn’t align as perfectly as we would have liked. But there’s no hard feelings on my end.”

He also understands if Senators fans feel differently.

“If that’s what they need to do, that’s fine,” DeBrincat said. “They are just passionate fans in Ottawa. And they just want what’s best for their team.”

DeBrincat is off to a strong start so far in 2023-24, as he is tied for the league lead in points with eight along with Vancouver Canucks centre Elias Pettersson and is tied for second in goals with five.

The Senators and Red Wings both have identical 3-1 records to start the season. In trading DeBrincat, the Senators added veteran Vladimir Tarasenko in free agency on a one-year deal to add scoring to the lineup and the move has paid off so far, as he has six points in four games, tying him for the team lead in points with Tim Stutzle.

“I wish nothing but the best for Ottawa and their fans. Those fans are so passionate and it’s good to see them have success early in the season,” DeBrincat said. “I do think it worked out for everybody.”

GREEN BAY – If the Packers' two-game losing streak has felt exceedingly long, that's because it has been.

It started on a Thursday, so the loss to the Lions hung around a few extra days before the Packers got to play again, 11 nights later on a Monday. Then the loss to the Raiders preceded the bye week.

So by the time the Packers and Broncos kick off on Sunday afternoon in Denver, it'll be 28 days since Green Bay chalked up a victory. That's a long time for two losses to linger.

"I mean, we haven't won in a month," cornerback Rasul Douglas said, rather matter of factly but with plenty of disdain in his voice. "We ain't won since the 24th or something like that of September? What's today? It's the 20th? That's a month. You know what I mean?

"So we haven't felt victory in a while and I'm tired of coming in here and everybody sad and just looking, you know what I'm saying, down. Just gotta do whatever it takes to win and when we get those opportunities to win, we gotta win."

Facing a struggling Broncos team certainly qualifies as such an opportunity, but the message this week has not focused on the one win on Denver's record.

"We're a two-win team," Head Coach Matt LaFleur said. "It is what it is. We know we have to play better.

"I'm not worried as much about them. I'm worried more about us. We need more consistent play in every facet."

At 2-3, the Packers also need to avoid falling in too big a hole in the still-early stages of the season. That's been a hallmark of the mostly successful tenures of the last two coaches.

Not since Mike McCarthy's first season in 2006 have the Packers fallen two games below .500 at any point through just six games. The last two times Green Bay was 2-3, in 2008 and 2012, it won to get back to .500.

It would be an important step for this year's squad, particularly after a week off to regroup and reset after two defeats everyone's had too long to think about.

"Getting back in that win column, getting that morale boost of coming back, getting a win, starting off right after the bye week, would be huge," running back AJ Dillon said.

Fellow running back Aaron Jones , who is hoping to return to action from a hamstring injury after missing three of the last four games, emphasized how much a change in the vibe at times like these can carry forward.

"You gotta get one to start stacking them," he said. "This is the next game and the next one is the most important one. So we've got to attack that and know hey, all it takes is one, to get on that roll and get that sense of confidence. One win, and I think that'll do a lot for us."

To say the least, the no-minced-words Douglas would concur.

"We gotta win," he said. "As much as anybody wanna say anything else about 1-0 or whatever, bruh, we gotta win. It's really just that simple for us.

"We just have to win."

Another familiar face: Russell Wilson will be the third opposing QB already this season to face the Packers with a new team, having already squared off against Green Bay with another team in the LaFleur era.

Under LaFleur, the Packers faced the Wilson-led Seahawks in 2021 and now get him with the Broncos. Earlier this season, the Packers saw Derek Carr with the Saints (also 2019 Raiders) and then Jimmy Garoppolo with the Raiders (also '19, '21 49ers).

In LaFleur's five seasons to date, that brings the total to seven opposing QBs who have faced the Packers with two different teams. The others are Philip Rivers (Chargers/Colts), Matthew Stafford (Lions/Rams), Jared Goff (Rams/Lions) and Baker Mayfield (Browns/Rams).

Unkind place: The city of Denver has not been friendly to the Packers. In franchise history, the Packers are just 1-7 in the regular season against the Broncos on the road.

Green Bay's lone win, after five straight losses, was a 19-13 overtime thriller on Monday Night Football on Oct. 29, 2007, when Brett Favre hit Greg Jennings for an 82-yard TD pass on the first snap of OT. The 19 points actually marks the most the Packers have ever scored in a game at Denver.

The only other time the Packers truly came close to a win was also on Monday Night Football in October, but in 1984. In a steady snowstorm that made for great television, the Packers fell behind 14-0 less than a minute into the game when the Broncos returned fumbles for touchdowns on the first two plays from scrimmage.

The deficit was 17-0 at halftime before the Packers rallied for two touchdowns, the second on a 54-yard TD pass from Lynn Dickey to James Lofton midway through the fourth quarter. Lofton finished with 11 catches for 206 yards, the most yards by a Packers receiver in one game in 28 years.

Green Bay got one more crack at the tying or go-ahead score, but after driving to the Denver 19-yard line with just over three minutes left, Dickey was sacked and lost a fumble.

Boasting one of the NBA’s youngest rosters and a new head coach, it was obvious that the Detroit Pistons would have growing pains during preseason. But there were enough strong stretches of basketball, on both ends of the floor, to suggest that this team may be meaningfully better than last year’s.

The Pistons closed their preseason slate with a 114-104 road loss to the Dallas Mavericks on Friday, finishing with a 2-2 record. Two gutsy road wins over Oklahoma City were bookended by an overtime loss in Detroit to the Phoenix Suns that saw the Pistons rally from a 26-point deficit, and Friday’s loss on the heels of a back-to-back.

Coach Monty Williams sat his starters for good midway through the third quarter as the Pistons faced a 16-point deficit. They fell behind early, lacking the defensive punch that characterized their win over the Thunder in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a night prior. They were also hurt by turnovers, coughing the ball up six times in the first quarter.

With a meaningless game out of reach, Williams closed the fourth quarter with Detroit’s Exhibit-10 and two-way players. He prioritized keeping his roster healthy on a night the team lost another player to injury.

Killian Hayes (left knee sprain) missed the game after starting Detroit’s previous two. He was replaced by Jaden Ivey, who served as Detroit’s sixth man during their first three preseason games. Hayes joined Bojan Bogdanovic (right calf strain), Monte Morris (lower back spasms) and Isaiah Livers (left ankle sprain) on the injury list.

Livers is expected to return around mid-November at the earliest. It’s unclear when Bogdanovic and Morris will be ready, as they both missed all four of Detroit’s preseason games. It also wasn’t immediately clear after the game if Hayes’ absence was precautionary or will lead to time missed during the regular season.

Detroit’s two-way players — Malcolm Cazalon and Jared Rhoden — led the team with 18 and 13 points, respectively. Top draft pick Ausar Thompson added nine points and a preseason-high 11 rebounds.

Stewart struggles from outside, but also shows growth

The Pistons’ fourth-year big man got Detroit on the board with a pair of free throws, driving from behind the 3-point line and drawing contact from Derrick Jones Jr. Later, he drove right from the corner and paused before whipping the ball to his left to get Thompson an open dunk.

Stewart’s transition to power forward hasn’t been seamless, but he has made strides. On Friday, he looked more comfortable with the ball in his hands and made an effort to keep the ball moving, which didn’t happen consistently enough last season. Defensively, Williams was pleased with his ability to move his feet and stay in front of smaller players on the perimeter.

Inside the arc, he had made 11 of 12 attempts entering Friday. Stewart did just about everything necessary to man the four — except hit outside shots. He made just one of 11 attempts during Detroit’s last two exhibitions, missing 10 straight before finally getting one to fall midway through the third quarter on Friday. Over four preseason games, he went 4-for-21.

Stewart started off hot from behind the arc last season before cooling off, finishing with a 32.7% clip. To thrive alongside Jalen Duren and fulfill Williams’ desire for adequate spacing on the floor, he’s going to have to bump that percentage up this season. He didn’t do that during preseason, but that’s what preseason is for, right? We’ll learn soon if his performance was due to offseason rust or points to larger issues with his shooting.

Thompson finishes preseason as he started it — strong

It’s clear why the this summer's No. 5 overall pick is a starter. Thompson already is one of Detroit’s most productive players. He grabbed at least eight rebounds in all four preseason games, dazzled with his athletic finishes at the rim, and showcased the defensive potential that led general manager Troy Weaver and his teammates to declare he’s already ready to handle the NBA’s best players.

Friday was Thompson’s worst as a playmaker, as he finished with four turnovers and zero assists. But he did tally 11 assists in his previous three games, and had several other passes that set his teammates up for easy transition points. He’s been an ideal connective wing, but he still has improvements to make as a shooter.

Thompson is already a foul magnet, attempting 23 free throws during preseason. He only knocked down 15 though, illustrating the strides he’s yet to make as a shooter. The Pistons should be encouraged, though. He knocked down four of 10 3-point attempts — a small sample size, but a sign that he isn’t the non-shooter some pegged him as entering the draft.

Allen Park — Jameson Williams hasn’t announced himself as a multi-sport athlete just yet, but in the last week, he’s scored a touchdown for the Detroit Lions and lit the lamp for the Detroit Red Wings.

Quick disclaimer: Williams, who sealed a 20-6 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday with his second-half touchdown reception from Jared Goff, didn’t actually score for the Red Wings in a 6-3 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Wednesday night.

But he did enjoy life as a popular NFL star when the hockey team invited him down to Little Caesars Arena to press the goal horn pregame, a new tradition at LCA as the Red Wings debut their “classic Hockeytown goal horn” this season.

Williams, a St. Louis native, said he attended the game with two family members.

"It was a lot of fun. It was my first hockey game I've ever been to and I just had a great experience with the fans," Williams said, smiling at his locker Thursday.

There was no shortage of comedic moments during Williams’ adventure to his first hockey game.

For starters, he was interviewed on the big screen at LCA, a standard procedure for a big guest. But the interview just so happened to coincide with TNT’s nationally televised, mid-period interview with Red Wings general manager Steve Yzerman, so Williams’ enlarged face sat right over Yzerman’s shoulder during the TV hit.

Then, he took to Instagram to document his travels, most notably his wonder at the fact Pittsburgh “moved the goalie” (or rather, pulled their goalie to get an extra attacker).

“It’s no goalie, so you can get free goals,” Williams said. “That’s just like no safeties, cover zero.”

During the video, Detroit added an empty-net goal to seal the win, and he got a high-five from the woman sitting in front of him while saying, "send them boys back home to wherever they from."

"We was just talking throughout the game. She was a Detroit Red Wings fan. She heard me trying to figure out the game, so she turned around and tried to explain it to me a couple of times, but when we were scoring, everybody was getting up, so we was just high-fiving," Williams said.

It may have been his first hockey game, but from the sound of it, it won't be his last.

[email protected]

Twitter/X: @nolanbianchi