Ohio State Professional Athletes

The King Behind the Plate

Dillon Dingler isn't sneaking up on anyone anymore. The Ohio State product and Detroit Tigers catcher was named MLB's best catcher by ESPN this week, a recognition that caps what The Sporting News has called one of the best individual seasons in Tigers history. Dingler is hitting .259 through the Aug. 9–15 stretch — down slightly from his .272 mark at the start of the week — but the modest week-over-week dip does nothing to diminish a breakout campaign that has turned him from prospect to benchmark. For Buckeye fans who watched him develop in Columbus, the validation is long overdue.

The Tigers rode Dingler all week against the White Sox and Guardians, and while the box scores were quiet — an RBI Thursday against Cleveland, a run scored Wednesday — the point of a great catcher is rarely what shows up in a line score. ESPN apparently did the math on everything else: pitch framing, game-calling, arm strength, and the kind of steady offensive production that makes Dingler a genuine two-way weapon. At .259 with pop in the lineup, he's no longer just the best catcher in Ohio State history. Per ESPN, he's the best in the sport.

Canzone Stays Hot in Seattle

Dominic Canzone is quietly having himself a week. The former Buckeye outfielder, now serving as DH for the Seattle Mariners, went 2-for-4 with an RBI, a run scored, and a walk in Saturday's 7–10 loss to the Astros — his second multi-hit game of the stretch. Canzone also went yard Wednesday against the Yankees, finishing that game with a hit, a homer, an RBI, and a run scored. He closed the week batting .255, up from .248 on Aug. 9.

The production isn't flashy, but it's consistent. Canzone has reached base in multiple games this period, and his power stroke showed up when Seattle needed it most against New York. Whether the Mariners can push into playoff contention may hinge on role players like Canzone sustaining exactly this kind of steady, multi-faceted contribution.

Feltner Grinds Through a Tough Diamondbacks Start

Ryan Feltner's week was a mixed bag. The Ohio State righty took the mound for the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday against Arizona, logging 5.0 innings with two strikeouts and two earned runs in what Yahoo Sports billed as a pivotal rubber-match showing against Merrill Kelly and the Diamondbacks. His ERA sits at 5.59 — not the number he wants, but the five-inning outing suggests some stabilization for a Rockies rotation that has had precious little of it. In Coors Field, a two-run, five-inning start against a live Diamondbacks lineup qualifies as a relative win.

---

Three Buckeyes. Three different stories. But the headline belongs to Dingler — an ESPN-certified reminder that Ohio State continues to produce major-league talent built to last.

Dillon Dingler is making Ohio State proud behind the plate — and at it.

The Tigers catcher turned in one of the week's most compelling performances in the AL, homering in three consecutive games while holding a .272+ batting average throughout the stretch. The run coincided with one of Detroit's most dominant offensive surges of the season: the Tigers scored eight or more runs in seven of their last eight games, a clip that has the rest of the American League standing up and paying attention.

The damage began Wednesday, August 5, when Dingler went 2-for-his-game with a home run and an RBI as Detroit throttled Seattle 8-0. Riley Greene and Gleyber Torres also went deep, but it was Troy Melton's seven scoreless innings that gave Dingler and company room to work. The former Buckeye followed that up Thursday with arguably his best showing of the week: 3-for-the-game with another homer, two RBIs, and two runs scored as the Tigers finished off an 11-0 beatdown of the Mariners. Dingler and Kevin McGonigle each hit two-run shots, and Framber Valdez matched Melton's effort with seven shutout innings of his own. Back-to-back shutouts. Back-to-back Dingler home runs.

By Saturday, August 8, Dingler carried his average to .276 with an RBI and a walk against San Francisco, as the Tigers moved on from Seattle looking very much like a team that has figured something out. The catcher's three-game homer streak is the headlining individual story of Ohio State's week in the majors, and it's not particularly close.

On the Mound in St. Louis

Ryan Feltner made his scheduled start for the Colorado Rockies on Saturday, drawing a tough matchup in St. Louis. The Ohio State righty went 5.1 innings, allowed three earned runs, and struck out two in a 2-3 loss to the Cardinals. His ERA now sits at 5.71 — a number that reflects a Rockies rotation still searching for consistent footing. Feltner gave his team a chance to compete, and that's about the best spin available on an otherwise modest outing.

Canzone Holds Steady in Seattle

Dominic Canzone, the Ohio State product now playing for the Mariners, had an active week despite his team being on the wrong end of Dingler's heroics. Canzone notched hits in multiple games during the Detroit series and a game against Minnesota, maintaining a .252–.257 average across the week. He was a bright spot in a Mariners lineup that was otherwise overwhelmed — Seattle was shutout in both the 8-0 and 11-0 losses to the Tigers.

The headline this week belongs to Dingler. Three home runs across three games, a batting average above .272, and a front-row seat to Detroit's most impressive offensive stretch of the season — the Columbus kid is delivering exactly what the Tigers hoped for when they handed him the starting catcher's job. Buckeye fans have plenty of reason to keep the Tigers in their second-screen rotation for the foreseeable future.