Troy Melton Might Be the Tigers’ Second-Best Starter

When Troy Melton was first featured here at FanGraphs in August 2023, he was described as a “Tigers Pitching Prospect on the Rise.” Then with High-A West Michigan and in his first full professional season, the 2022 fourth-rounder out of San Diego State University was climbing the rankings thanks largely to a firm fastball and plus command. As Eric Longenhagen put it, “His fastball’s impact alone should be enough to make him a good big league reliever even if his secondary stuff doesn’t develop.”

Two years later, the 24-year-old right-hander was ranked the fifth-best prospect in the Tigers system and 70th overall in our 2025 updated Top 100 list. His ascent has landed him in Motown, and a markedly improved repertoire is a big reason why. Moreover, he has been one of the team’s most effective pitchers since his late-July arrival. Over 10 appearances — seven out of the bullpen and three as a starter — Melton has logged a 2.25 ERA and a 3.66 FIP over 32 innings.

An argument could be made that Melton is currently the second-best starting pitcher on the Tigers roster — behind only Tarik Skubal — even though he isn’t getting an opportunity to show it. The AL Central leaders are primarily using the rookie as a reliever, the reasons being twofold: The 107 1/3 innings he’s thrown between the minors and majors are already a career high, and Detroit would rather use him more than just every fifth day. According to Evan Petzold of The Detroit Free Press, manager A.J. Hinch said, “It’s an advantage to have Troy Melton available more often, even if it’s just in shorter bursts.”

Hinch went on to say that the Tigers “may start him down the road this season,” and results suggest that could be a good idea. Over the past six weeks, the foursome of Jack Flaherty, Casey Mize, Charlie Morton, and Chris Paddack has registered ERAs ranging from 4.66 to 5.81. Meanwhile, Melton’s mark over his three starts, covering 17 innings, is 3.18. Prior to his call-up, the youngster fashioned a 2.72 ERA and a 32.4% strikeout rate across 18 games (16 starts) with Triple-A Toledo.

Which brings us to his evolution as a pitcher. Two years after talking with him down on the farm, I caught up to Melton to ask what has changed. How does he differ from when he was taking the mound in the Midwest League?

“I’m the same person, for sure,” Melton told me at Comerica Park in the penultimate week of August. “Pitching-wise, though, there is a big difference between High-A and here. Even from Triple-A and here. Getting more consistent with execution is the biggest thing. There have been some new grips and pitches, but executing more often has been my main goal.”

The mention of new grips and pitches was right up my alley, so I proceeded to ask Melton about the adjustments he’s made to his repertoire.

“In High-A, I didn’t have a curveball at all; I was using a big sweeper as that sort of pitch,” he said. “So, I changed from sweeper to curveball — this was in the offseason going into 2024 — just a traditional knuckle-curveball right over the horseshoe. Initially it was supposed to be a pitch to get into counts with something other than the fastball, but it has turned into a pitch where I can get swing-and-miss, and even strikeouts.”

Interestingly, the curveball has been Melton’s least-used pitch as a Tiger; he’s throwing it just 5.1% of the time. More impactful has been his slider. Whereas he used to throw a sweeper and a cutter, the former is now “a true slider.”

“I throw it harder now,” Melton explained. “When my slider was more of a sweeper it was around 81-82 [mph], and now it averages 86ish. It is depthier, around negative two or negative three on the charts, and with less horizontal.

“The cutter has been a lot firmer this year, as well,” he added. “When we talked before, I was probably throwing it 86-87 on average, and now it’s 90-91 with shorter movement. It’s more a fastball than it was. Before, it had been kind of like a weird hybrid breaking ball. It was a good pitch, but not a great pitch. Now I’m in a better spot where it’s a little bit harder with a little tighter movement.”

Per Stacast, Melton’s slider and cutter usage has been 25.2% and 10.4%, respectively. And then there is his new fastball. Along with a 96.9-mph four-seamer, which he is throwing at a 36.9% clip, Melton is mixing in 95.4-mph sinkers at 15.3%.

“Metrically, the two isn’t the prettiest pitch in the world,” he admitted. “I do throw some good ones, but it’s more that it’s not just four-seam, four-seam, four-seam all the time. I can change their eyes and make it harder for them to gear up for just one. It’s more of a two-seam than a sinker, but I call it a sinker just for my brain when I’m throwing it.”

Whether or not the Detroit brain trust chooses to use Melton as a starter down the stretch could very well impact the team’s fortunes. The Tigers may have the division locked up, but with a .500 record since the beginning of July and six losses in their last eight games, they no longer have a firm grasp on the top seed in the American League. These September games are going to be meaningful.

For now, the Tigers appear to be staying the course with their rotation, and that could prove to be the wise move. Maybe it is beneficial to have Melton available to pitch more often than he would as a starter, and it makes some sense that the Tigers have faith in Flaherty and Mize. Flaherty has an bloated 4.66 ERA over the last two months, but his peripherals (3.03 FIP, 3.37 xFIP) suggest he’s been a better pitcher than that, and Mize was an All-Star this season for his excellent first half. If they turn things around over these next few weeks, they could join Skubal to form a daunting postseason rotation trio. In that case, Melton could be more useful as a reliable reliever than as the fourth man in the rotation, even though deadline additions Morton and Paddack look to be cooked. But if things don’t break Detroit’s way with Flaherty and Mize, it’s fair to wonder whether the team has a starter other than Skubal that it can trust more than Melton.

Either way, thanks to some key adjustments, Melton is emerging as an important piece for the Tigers at precisely the right time — even if it’s unclear what specific role he will fill down the stretch and in the playoffs.