Saturday, June 21

Jace Jung returned to Comerica Park this week ready to don some eye black. It wasn’t a reaction to the sun shining from over the first-base stands at the start of night games, or preparation for a dose of day games. For Jung, it’s a mentality.

It’s a throwback to Jung’s college career at Texas Tech, when he was trying to prove he was just as much the prospect that his older brother Josh was. But he was also trying to win, trying to lead the Red Raiders on NCAA Tournament runs. They made the Super Regionals in 2021 and the Regional finals in 2022 before falling to Notre Dame.

Jung, of course, went to the Tigers with the 12th overall pick in the 2022 Draft.

“I just go out there and have fun, kinda get back to my college days, going out there with a little chip on your shoulder, go prove somebody wrong,” Jung said Tuesday. “I got the eye black back on. I should’ve put it on in Spring Training, but I went back to the eye black, so now we go.”

Jung has had the eye black at times in his pro career and not had it at others. He can’t explain why he didn’t have it in Spring Training, but with everything going on around him, it’s understandable how he could get away from it. 

He reported to camp with an uncertain role while the Tigers pursued free-agent third baseman Alex Bregman. Once Bregman signed with the Red Sox in mid-February, Jung looked like the top option at third base. But he struggled to hit in Grapefruit League play, going 4-for-33 (.121) with one home run and 10 strikeouts, and was optioned to Triple-A Toledo with about a week to go.

Once the Mud Hens’ season began, Jung said, the eye black went on.

“You just have to put a chip on your shoulder, go out there, try to compete and get back as soon as possible,” he said. “It’s not easy getting sent down. That’s probably one of the worst feelings I’ve ever had. But just be able to go out there and grind, have fun and find the joy in the game … I had fun with those guys down there, and every guy down there in Toledo helped me get back to where I am right now, so I really appreciate all those guys.

“This game, little kids grow up playing it, I grew up playing it. That was kinda my mentality going down: 'Have fun, enjoy these moments with these guys down here and try to compete.'”

While the Tigers went with a mix of Zach McKinstry, Javier Báez and Andy Ibáñez at third base, Jung bounced between third and second base in Toledo, often alternating with fellow Tigers prospect Hao-Yu Lee (team No. 7). Jung hit .239 but posted an .872 OPS thanks to hitting for power -- half of his 16 hits went for extra bases, including three home runs -- and reaching base with 20 walks.

“It’s the way I’ve been pitched,” Jung said. “They’re trying to nick the corners, and they have the ABS [challenge system].”

Even without a challenge system, Jung’s on-base skills paid dividends upon arrival in Detroit. He walked twice and scored in Monday’s series opener against the Padres before going 0-for-3 against Nick Pivetta the next day.

Jung figures to get a good look at third base in the coming games, in part because the Orioles have three right-handed starting pitchers lined up for this weekend’s series at Comerica Park. While McKinstry has been one of the Tigers’ hottest hitters, he figures to spend most of his time this weekend in the outfield while Kerry Carpenter eases back from his hamstring injury at designated hitter. From there, the Tigers will likely do more mixing and matching.

Jung is ready for it. But he also doesn’t want to lose sight of what got him back here. Hence the eye black.

“Just go out there and have fun,” he said. “That’s the little kid in me. Let’s go out there, have fun, go out and have a good time with these guys and win games.”

• Triple-A Toledo: The Mud Hens won back-to-back games to begin a six-game homestand against the Royals’ affiliate, Omaha, to improve to 7-16. Jahmai Jones went 2-for-3 with a home run and a triple Wednesday to lead the Mud Hens to an 8-4 win. Andrew Chafin tossed perfect ninth innings on back-to-back nights with two strikeouts each, lowering his ERA to 2.53 with 15 strikeouts over 10 2/3 innings this season.

• Double-A Erie: The SeaWolves entered Thursday on a four-game winning streak, including back-to-back wins at Nationals-affiliated Harrisburg to stay on top of the Eastern League’s Southwest Division at 12-5. No. 11 prospect Troy Melton got a no-decision Wednesday, allowing three runs over as many innings with a walk and two strikeouts.

Melton carries a 1.69 ERA through four starts as he awaits a home start against Binghamton next week. No. 18 prospect Joseph Montalvo tossed five scoreless innings while allowing two hits with two walks and four strikeouts on Tuesday for his first Double-A victory.

• High-A West Michigan: The Whitecaps saw their seven-game winning streak end Wednesday with a loss at Dayton. No. 6 prospect Josue Briceño went 2-for-4 with a double and a three-run homer in a five-RBI performance in a 10-0 win in Dayton on Tuesday. No. 2 prospect Max Clark went 5-for-13 with five walks and two doubles over a four-game stretch through Wednesday, raising his average to .296 and his OPS to .913.

• Single-A Lakeland: The Flying Tigers are 9-9 after winning two of their first three in this week’s six-game homestand against Pirates-affiliated Bradenton. No. 4 prospect Bryce Rainer hit his first pro home run and first double in a 2-for-4, two-RBI performance Thursday. No. 20 prospect Paul Wilson tossed two scoreless innings with a walk and four strikeouts Wednesday in his best Single-A performance to date.

To subscribe to Tigers Beat, visit this page and mark "Tigers Beat" from our newsletter list. Make sure you're following the Tigers or that they're checked as your favorite team.

View Online

© 2025 MLB Advanced Media, L.P. MLB trademarks and copyrights are used with permission of Major League Baseball. Visit MLB.com. Any other marks used herein are trademarks of their respective owners.

Please review our Privacy Policy.

You (mlb-newsletters@mlb.com) received this message because you registered to receive commercial email messages or purchased a ticket from MLB. 

Please add info@marketing.mlbemail.com to your address book to ensure our messages reach your inbox. If you no longer wish to receive commercial email messages from MLB.com, please unsubscribe or log in and manage your email subscriptions.

Postal Address: MLB.com, c/o MLB Advanced Media, L.P., 1271 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.