Jackson Jobe might wind up being a trade piece for the Detroit Tigers

Detroit Tigers fans, buckle in. It’s time for you’re quarterly article on Jackson Jobe.

The Detroit Tigers used their third overall pick in the 2021 MLB First-Year Amateur Player Draft on Jobe, a high-school phenom from Oklahoma. Months later, it looks like the Tigers high-school draft pick could wind up being something special.

When it comes to Jobe and his skillset, the Tigers are hoping that potential and strong player development will lead him down a path to join Casey Mize at the front of the team’s rotation for years to come.

From the outside looking in, and based on everything I’ve seen on him, Jobe has the talent and potential upside. The biggest question for Jobe is his timeline and how that is going to line up with the Tigers rebuild.

Three to four years from now, bringing in a then-23-year-old starting pitcher to the established rotation may not entirely be what the Tigers want. There may be another avenue that Jobe ends up going down.

Detroit Tigers pitcher Jackson Jobe could wind up as trade bait.

My personal hope is for Jobe to be kept around and for the Tigers not to jump the gun on any trades. I’d like to see Jobe kept around, but understand that the timeline may not align with the rebuild.

On the other hand, Jobe may end becoming trade bait. Why you might ask?

The Tigers are far from being done building. Spending a plethora of money every offseason will not do anything but put the Tigers in a worse spot down the line. However, utilizing excess talent and talent that does not meet the timeline for trades is a better option.

There’s no one that specifically stands out, but an article from Call To The Pen on the FanSided network, got me thinking. While Matt Chapman is the example in the previously linked article, it builds the framework for a future trade.

Pitching Coach Chris Fetter will be jumping for joy when Jobe gets on the mound at Comerica Park for the first time. The archetype of Jobe plays right into the type of pitcher that Fetter has the most success with. For more on that, check out this piece about Fetter falling in love with Jobe’s potential.

But, this may not be enough to stop General Manager (GM) Al Avila from packaging Jobe in trade talks. Chapman was the example, but any stud player the Tigers are truthfully in on may spark Jobe’s name to get tossed around.

Looking at where things stand with the Tigers roster, it’s hard to think that Jobe may not become trade bait more often than not in the coming years.