Detroit Tigers' Ethan DeCaster has taken 'mind boggling' progression through minors

ERIE, Pennsylvania. — I considered giving Detroit Tigers prospect Ethan DeCaster a little test.

“Close your eyes,” I wanted to say. “OK. Tell me what city you are in? What team are you on?”

But I chickened out.

Because what if he got it wrong? What if he had no idea where he was? Or what team he was on? Or what level he was playing? Certainly, it would be understandable to get confused when you consider the amazing journey he has taken through the entire Tigers’ minor league system in less than one year.

“Yeah, it’s been kinda crazy,” DeCaster said.

Kinda crazy?

That doesn’t begin to describe it.

Less than 365 days after the Tigers took DeCaster in the 18th round of the 2018 draft, DeCaster climbed all the way from rookie ball to Triple-A Toledo, while playing on six different teams, bouncing through a series of cities and endless blur of hotels, putting up impressive numbers at every level.

“It’s mind-boggling how fast everything has taken place,” Erie manager Mike Rabelo said.  “I don’t know how many other players have gone to Triple-A less than 365 days after being drafted. That’s amazing. That is absolutely amazing. And not only that, having success at it. He’s probably got suitcases scattered from the Internal League, to the Eastern League, to the Florida State League.”

OK. Maybe, it’s not that bad.

But it’s close.

“I’ve been bouncing through hotels,” DeCaster said. “I feel like I’ve been in 15 different hotels in the last two months, and a bunch of different rooms within those hotels.”

He just had his car shipped from Florida to Erie. And best of all, he happens to be in Erie now.

“I kind of keep a bag packed at all times,” DeCaster said. “You never know where you are going. It’s kind of been a crazy year….  I mean, a year ago, I was pitching for Duke in a Super Regional" in the NCAA tournament.

DeCaster, a 24-year-old sidearm relief pitcher, has appeared in 40 games in the Tigers system, throwing 69 2/3 innings. The righty has a 1.42 ERA with a 0.804 WHIP. He has struck out 81 with just 10 walks and has allowed just three home runs. Teams are hitting just .186 against him.

“He’s done a fantastic job,” said Dave Littlefield, the Tigers' vice president of player development. “He throws a lot of strikes and obviously has been ultra-successful to this point. We see him as having big league potential.”

There are a couple of factors that have played a role in DeCaster’s rapid rise: He is older and has a mature personality, which has allowed him to handle all of the moves. 

 “He has been very effective, produced really, really well for us through the system,” said A.J. Sager, the Tigers' minor league pitching coordinator. “He’s a mature kid, a little bit older. Quite frankly, he does all of the fundamentals right. He pitches both sides of the plate. Throws strikes. Has movement on his pitches. Keeps the ball in the ball park. He has an 8-to-1 ratio of strikeouts to walks, which is obviously off the charts.”

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A fresh start

DeCaster grew up in Minnesota and started his college career at Creighton.

 “My freshman year at Creighton, I kind of battled some injuries,” DeCaster said. “I was more of a traditional over-the-top pitcher.”

He rehabbed his arm, but still battled the injury. “Before a scrimmage one time, I said, ‘Let’s do it.’ ”

And a sidearm pitcher was born.

“It’s not quite a submarine pitcher,” Sager said. “Certainly, not ordinary from an arm slot, from what most pitchers do. I think that plays to his favor as well. To add a bit of deception. It does help his movement. The other thing he’s able to do from that arm slot, he’s able to command both sides of the plate. That’s not easy to do for a lot of guys, who throw from down there.”

After pitching for three years at Creighton, DeCaster moved to Duke as a graduate transfer. He earned a master’s degree in business management.

The Tigers drafted him 525th overall and DeCaster signed on June 20, 2018, and was assigned to the Connecticut Tigers. After about a month, he was moved up to the West Michigan Whitecaps. After another month, he moved to High-A Lakeland.

 “I’ve had a lot of teammates, great guys,” DeCaster said. “There is a lot of talent (in this system). It’s an exciting time to be a Tiger.”

This year, he started out in Erie and moved to Toledo in late May. 

After DeCaster was promoted to Toledo, Rabelo remembers turning to Erie pitching coach Mark Johnson and saying: “Man, one year ago, this kid was getting ready for the ACC tournament.”

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DeCaster appeared in five games in Toledo. He recorded 10 strikeouts with no walks and didn’t allow a run in 6 1/3 innings. He had a 0.632 WHIP

“I saw him the other day,” Littlefield said. “He has some life to the fastball. I think it gives a different look. And we are working on some things to get him to achieve at higher levels. This guy is a really refreshing young man. A great kid.”

He returned to Erie on June 10.

“What makes him so good?” I asked Rabelo.

“I’ve asked MJ (Mark Johnson) that a hundred times,” Rabelo said. “He stays out of the middle of the plate. And he’s got pitchability. He doesn’t throw many center cut pitches. He’s got that deceptive cross fire.”

“He doesn’t throw that fast,” I said.

“He’s not lighting up the radar gun,” Rabelo said. "But when you look at his numbers, he’s having a heck of a year.”

As far as the rapid ascension, Littlefield said, “it’s very unusual. Obviously performance is the key factor.”

DeCaster has shown a high level of maturity and an impressive makeup, just being able to handle all of the moves and make the adjustments at every level.

 “It’s very rare,” Sager said. “In our system, it hasn’t happened much, if at all. To his credit, he’s handled it all very well because there is a lot of transition that comes with that. Your life is kind of in turmoil, as far as traveling."

But he has handled it well.

He has been given several opportunities and he's made the most of them.

“It is a great time to be a minor league player in the Tigers organization,” Littlefield said. “There is tremendous opportunity.  It’s a combination of the player’s performance but secondly, we are aggressive at getting some of our better players to higher levels and seeing what they can do.”

DeCaster has certainly looked impressive, while bouncing through the Tigers' minor league system.

Not bad for an 18th-round draft pick.

As Rabelo said, it's simply mind-boggling.

Contact Jeff Seidel: jseidel@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @seideljeff. To read his recent columns, go to freep.com/sports/jeff-seidel.