Alex Lange Called Up to Major Leagues

Former LSU starting pitcher Alex Lange got the call up to the big leagues on Saturday to join the Detroit Tigers.

Lange, a former first round pick by the Chicago Cubs, will be the 20th former player coached by Paul Mainieri to reach the majors. He was acquired by Detroit in a trade deadline deal with the Cubs in August of 2019.

Lange couldn’t quite cut it as a starting pitcher in the Cubs organization, but has since reinvented himself as an excellent reliever for the Tigers. His fastball was hovering around 93-94 MPH but has picked back up some velocity and is consistently hitting 97-98. With his improved fastball and nasty curve, Lange quickly rose up Detroit’s prospect rankings and hopefully can stick in the Tigers’ bullpen.

Lange is one of the best pitchers to come through the LSU program. He is one of 10 former Tigers to record 30 career wins and his 406 strikeouts are the second most in program history. Lange was an All-American in 2017 and the national freshman pitcher of the year in 2015 posting a 12-0 record with a 1.97 ERA.