Tigers' Kubitza tosses four hitless innings in AFL

Tigers prospect Austin Kubitza has pitched well throughout his stint in the Arizona Fall League, but Wednesday's start was his best yet.

The right-hander threw four no-hit innings as he led the Scottsdale Scorpions to a 8-2 win over the Peoria Javelinas at the Peoria Sports Complex.

Kubitza threw 70 pitches, 38 for strikes, and struck out five in the process.

Selected in the fourth round of the 2013 Draft, Kubitza is the No. 8 prospect in the Tigers' organization, but in 2015, the results weren't all there.

In 27 starts for Double-A Erie, the right-hander went 9-13 with a 5.79 ERA.

However, in four starts in the AFL, Kubitza has given up just four runs in 15 2/3 innings and is looking more like the pitcher that went 10-2 in 23 starts while posting a 2.34 ERA for Class-A Western Michigan in 2014.

Even though Kubitza was dominant Wednesday, it's not as if he snapped Peoria's three-game winning streak all by himself. The Scottsdale offense provided him with plenty of support.

Twins No. 10 prospect Adam Brett Walker II ignited the Scorpions' offense with a solo homer in the second inning and from there the entire lineup produced.

Baltimore's Jason Garcia had been sharp in the early goings of the AFL, but struggled Wednesday.

The right-hander gave up just one run over seven innings in his first three starts, but couldn't find the strike zone against Scottsdale as he walked four in 2 1/3 innings.

Scottsdale tallied nine hits, five for extra bases and scored in five consecutive innings from the second to the sixth.

Walker's blast gave him a team-leading four home runs, but he wasn't the only Scorpion to go deep as Cleveland's Todd Hankins hit a solo shot -- his first homer of the season -- in the fourth.