By: Shane Petagna (The University of Tampa)
Serving as the starting pitcher for the San Diego Padres on Saturday, Jackson Wolf became the fourth former Kettleer to make his major league debut in 2023.
Joining Matt Mervis, Casey Schmitt, and Nick Gonzales, Wolf is yet another 2019 CCBL Championship team member to make it to “The Show.”
With the Kettleers in 2019, Wolf was a fan favorite as he made six starts for the team in the regular season. Over 26 2/3 innings pitched, the left-hander struck out 27 batters and finished with a 3.03 ERA. Additionally, Wolf made two starts in the postseason for Cotuit.
The southpaw came to the Cape after his sophomore year at West Virginia. Wolf enjoyed four seasons with the Mountaineers where he became a key member of their rotation starting his sophomore year. He pitched in a total of 50 games in college, making 33 starts.
Wolf’s best season came in 2021 when he posted a 3.03 ERA and struck out 104 batters over 89 innings pitched. His performance led to him being named to the All-Big 12 Second Team and a fourth-round selection by the Padres in the 2021 MLB Draft.
Wolf was called up from Double A San Antonio, where he made 17 starts in 2023 with a 3.39 ERA and WHIP at an impressive 0.988 mark.
On Saturday against the Detroit Tigers, Wolf was the winning pitcher after tossing a solid five innings, allowing three earned runs on six hits, one walk, and one strikeout.