Express alum Dietrich Enns announced his return to the majors in a big way.
The former Train made his first MLB appearance in nearly four years and first start since 2017 Thursday evening, tossing five scoreless innings and picking up the win for the Detroit Tigers. The dominant outing ended a 1,371-day gap between appearances and an unbelievable 2,877 days between big-league starts.
It has been a long and windy journey for Enns since he played summer ball in Eau Claire in 2010. A product of Central Michigan University, Enns was drafted in the 19th round of the 2012 draft. He worked his way through the minor league system before being called up by the Minnesota Twins and making his debut on August 10, 2017. He played two games for the Twins before heading back down to the minor league system for the 2018 season.
He returned to MLB action in 2021 as a member of the Tampa Bay Rays, where he saw more sustained action with nine appearances. His final appearance — and most recent before Thursday’s start — was a two-inning relief appearance on September 24, 2021. Enns went abroad for the past three seasons, spending 2022 and 2023 with the Seibu Lions in Japan and 2024 with the LG Twins of the Korean Baseball Organization.
Detroit signed him to a minor league deal in January 2025, and Enns impressed with Triple-A Toledo, posting a 2.89 ERA across 62.1 innings. His steady performance earned him a call-up on Wednesday, and he didn’t disappoint.
Enns’ journey — from Eau Claire to Major League Baseball, through Japan and Korea and back again — is a story of persistence and deep love for the game. The Express are proud to see another former player succeeding once again on baseball’s biggest stage.
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The Eau Claire Express are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Entering its’ 32nd season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in history with 24 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires, and front office staff, nearly 2400 NWL alums have been drafted and over 380 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (TOR), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford and World Series Champion Chris Sale (ATL). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2023 World Series Champion, MLB All-Star, MLB Gold Glove, two-time Silver Slugger winner and two-time All-MLB first team shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). League games are viewable live on Northwoods League+ (at watch.northwoodsleague.com), ESPN+, and the Northwoods League Network. Learn more and find complete streaming schedules at watchnwl.com. For more information, visit www.eauclaireexpress.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Express as your favorite team.
