Tigers’ Beau Brieske Ready To Build On Breakout 2021 Season

Beau Brieske can’t recall a time when he didn’t have some type of ball in his hand. He played every sport growing up in Arizona.

The youngest of three children, Brieske’s energy led his parents to sign him up for tee ball at 3 years old, and it wasn’t long before he was hooked.

It wasn’t until the righthander began to dial in on pitching as his primary role that the studying began in earnest and with it, the belief that a future in baseball may be more feasible than he first realized.

For the 6-foot-3, 200-pound Brieske, it was a matter of confidence.

“It wasn’t until junior college that I really decided that was the goal that I wanted to chase,” Brieske said of his time at Glendale (Ariz.) JC. “And that’s also when the work started to mirror the goal. I would say ever since then, I had a goal for myself that I wanted to play in the major leagues.”

Brieske transferred to Colorado State-Pueblo, from where the Tigers drafted him in the 27th round in 2019.

Brieske made 11 relief appearances, primarily in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League, in his 2019 pro debut. Then the pandemic halted activity in 2020. While the canceled minor league season derailed some players, Brieske saw it as an opportunity.

“We were training every day, and it was honestly some of the most fun I ever had,” Brieske said. “Possibly the biggest jump that I took as a baseball player is just, and I mean mentally, physically, everything, it was really good for me.”

Fast-forward to 2021 and the confidence boost was clear.

The 23-year-old racked up 10.9 strikeouts per nine innings and a 1.02 WHIP over 62.2 innings with High-A West Michigan, earning a jump to Double-A Erie to finish the regular season.

The Tigers rewarding Brieske as the organization’s minor league pitcher of the year.

That earned Brieske an invitation to big league camp this year, where his mission remained the same: to reach the major leagues.

TIGER TALES

— Following his breakout season in 2021, shortstop Ryan Kreidler hasn’t lost momentum at big league camp. The 24-year-old knocked a grand slam against the Pirates on March 23.

— After missing the 2021 season while rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, Alex Faedo returned to the mound for the Tigers in a spring training game against the Yankees on March 20. The 26-year-old allowed one unearned run and a walk while striking out one in one inning.