Detroit— There is a fire that burns inside Tigers lefty Joey Wentz. There has to be. You don’t climb the minor-league ladder for six seasons, get knocked back by the dreaded, if inevitable, Tommy John surgery and still fight your way to the big leagues without an intense competitive flame.
But it’s like the pilot light on an old furnace — you know it’s there, but you aren’t going to see it from the outside. Wentz, if you want a one-word description, is chill. You can’t characterize his demeanor because he doesn’t really have one — on the mound or off.