Turner excited to face childhood favorites

Toledo's Jacob Turner will make his season debut with the Tigers on Thursday against St. Louis. THE BLADE/LORI KING Enlarge | Buy This Photo

Things couldn't have gone much better for Jacob Turner than they did on Sunday.

The Mud Hens right-hander found out Detroit would promote him to start for the team Thursday. The St. Charles, Mo., native also found out he will face his childhood favorites, the St. Louis Cardinals.

"I was excited [to find out], especially since I'll be pitching against the Cardinals," Turner said. "That's the team I grew up rooting for.

"It's cool, but right now I'm focused on pitching."

Among the interested followers will be St. Louis manager Mike Matheny, and not just because it's his team facing Turner. Turner was a high school teammate of Matheny's son at Westminster Christian Academy in St. Louis.

"He helped prepare me for the pro game," Turner said of the Cardinals manager. "It's obviously a big adjustment from pitching in high school to pitching in the pros.

"He gave me a good base for what I needed to know, what I could expect going to instructional league and spring training."

Turner has made seven starts for the Mud Hens and has a 2-1 record and 3.43 ERA.

In his last three starts Turner is 2-0 with a 1.43 ERA.

"A lot with Jacob was with building his arm strength, and I think his velocity is back," Hens manager Phil Nevin said. "In his last outing he touched 94 mph and was at 91-92 quite a bit.

"The sinker has been his best pitch, and he's been getting a lot of ground-ball outs."

One of those starts came at Durham, when the 21-year-old allowed eight hits and one run in 6⅔ innings despite not having his best stuff.

"Some times you want to see a guy when he doesn't have his best stuff," Nevin said. "It sounds strange, but you want to see how guys respond.

"He was able to make pitches and get outs with less than his best stuff."

Turner feels he is a different pitcher from the guy who had an 8.53 ERA in three starts for the Tigers last season.

"I think I have a better understanding of what it takes [to succeed in the majors]," Turner said. "I think it's a matter of consistency -- being consistent every time out there."

ROSTER MOVES: The Mud Hens have made a number of roster moves since they were last in Toledo. Among those who have left the team were outfielders Jeff Frazier and Eric Patterson.

Frazier was released by the team before Monday's game, while Patterson exercised an opt-out clause in his contract on Saturday.

"We've had some guys get healthy, and our roster is at 25 now," Nevin said. "It was a numbers things. Frazier is a tremendous teammate. [Releasing a player] is always tough, but that was especially tough."

Among those who have joined the Mud Hens is IF Cale Iorg, who missed the start of the season after off-season shoulder surgery, and outfielder Jerad Head, who returned to the roster after rehabbing an injured wrist.

RESET THE ROTATION: With the return of LHP Casey Crosby from Detroit, the Mud Hens are starting to get their rotation back together.

LHP Adam Wilk will start today against the IronPigs, with Crosby taking Wednesday's start and RHP Brooks Brown starting Thursday. The starter for Friday's game against Norfolk has yet to be named.

Contact John Wagner at: jwagner@theblade.com, 419-724-6481 or on Twitter @jwagnerblade.