Jacob Turner called up by Detroit: Jon Heyman report

Late breaking news on the Twitters: SI's Jon Heyman reported last night (around 1:45 in the morning) that bigtime Tigers pitching prospect Jacob Turner was getting the call to the major leagues. Given that Duane Below is the probable starter tomorrow, Turner is most likely going to take his place in the rotation. Jason Beck followed up at about 2:05, saying that Turner was not with the Tigers, but that he was not pitching for Erie either.

A refresher course on Turner: his fastball sits in the low to mid 90's (think 92-94) and touches 96 on a regular basis. Turner's best secondary offering is a 12-6 curve that looks to be a potential plus pitch in the major leagues, and he also features a changeup that could become an above average pitch as well. His command is advanced for his age. While the scouting reports all look good, Turner still needs to polish his entire game.

This year, Turner has put up a FIP of 3.90 and an ERA of 3.48 at AA Erie. His strikeout to walk ratio, at 90 K's to 32 BB's in just under 115 innings, is good, but he only strikes batters out at a rate of about 19%. That isn't the dominant strikeout rate most people would expect of a top prospect, but it still isn't horrible. There are, however, concerns about his readiness, which are warranted. It is important to remember, that despite the praise that has been heaped upon him, Jacob Turner is a 20 year old who has never pitched an inning above AA ball.

Based on the information available, there are essentially two options as to what happens to Turner now. Either Turner will take Below's spot in the rotation on Wednesday, as Heyman indicated in his original tweet, or the Tigers are very close on a major trade that will send Turner away from the organization. The plot thickens, but we'll know more tomorrow morning.