In 2010, Enns was a Louisville Slugger Freshman All American at the University of Central Michigan.

In 2011, Dietrich was a Cape Cod League All Star.

In 2012, Enns got drafted by the Yankees (see Transactions below).

In May 2020, the Mariners released Enns, leaving him without a job in baseball during an uncertain year for everyone in the sport. He enrolled in online classes at Northeastern University, carrying over credits from Central Michigan University and pursuing a degree in business management.

Enns still wanted to play baseball, considering winter ball as a possibility, but wondered if it might be time to move on and support his family. His wife, Julie Anne, encouraged him to keep pitching. That led the left-hander on a journey from independent ball in Joliet, Illinois, to the Rays’ alternate training site in Port Charlotte, Fla., to a dominant stretch with Triple-A Durham and, finally, to Tropicana Field.

A year after he was pitching and coaching for the independent Tully Monsters, Enns had his contract selected by the Rays and joined their bullpen against the Mariners.

“There was a time in June last summer in 2020, when I didn't have a job in baseball and was going back to school and didn't know what the future of my baseball career was going to be,” Enns said. “Luckily, my wife was really supportive of me to stay on board and keep sticking with it. Went to play indy ball, and it's been a crazy whirlwind since then.”

This was not Enns’ first call to the Majors. He debuted with the Twins on Aug. 10, 2017, only to go down with an injury in his second start. He went from the Twins' organization to the Padres to the Mariners over the last three years, overhauling his mechanics and becoming “a totally different pitcher,” he said, only to be cut loose two months after Spring Training was shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The day he debuted for Minnesota, he hardly expected it’d be four years before he was back in the big leagues. “I thought I'd go up and hoped to stay, but you never know what baseball's going to do in life,” Enns said. “It's kind of been an up-and-down journey, but [I'm] happy to be healthy and throwing well and just to be back here.”

It was a remarkable journey, one that included a stop in independent ball in Joliet, about 15 miles from Enns’ hometown of Frankfort, Ill. He served as the staff’s ace and pitching coach under manager Scott Spiezio, a former big leaguer. He was able to see his family every day, living with his parents in his old room, and he kept pitching, hoping all the while he’d catch a team’s attention but uncertain if there’d be an opportunity. 

But it finally came when Kevin Ibach, the Rays’ senior director of pro personnel and pro scouting, saw Enns pitch in person. Tampa Bay’s front office was on the lookout for a left-hander who could pitch multiple innings and serve as depth at the club’s alternate site, and Enns fit the bill. A day or two after meeting Ibach and hearing of the Rays’ interest, Enns was on a plane heading to Port Charlotte for a physical before signing his Minor League deal.

“It was a blessing in disguise to go to indy ball,” Enns said. “And really, a lot of good things came from it since then.” (A Berry - MLB.com - Aug 3, 2021)

In 2021, in 14 outings for Triple-A Durham, the 30-year-old lefty went 6-2 with a 2.44 ERA, 75 strikeouts, and only 15 walks in 59 innings.

His dominance in Triple-A was impossible to ignore. Even before knowing the Rays would need to make a roster move, manager Kevin Cash said he and pitching coach Kyle Snyder were discussing Enns and “how valuable he could be.” Tampa Bay optioned right-hander Chris Mazza to Durham, transferred reliever Ryan Thompson to the 60-day injured list, and added Enns to the bullpen as a multi-inning option.

“Dietrich's done a really good job in Triple-A. He did a really good job last year when we picked him up,” Cash said. “All he's done is made progress.”

When Durham manager Brady Williams called Enns with news of his promotion, Enns and his wife called their parents. Four years ago, Julie Anne couldn’t get off work to see his MLB debut. They boarded a flight together for Enns’ long-awaited second chance in The Show.

“She never got to see me pitch in the big leagues at the time, so she said she was going to come down,” Enns said, “and she wasn't taking no for an answer.” (A Berry - MLB.com - Aug 3, 2021)

June 26, 2025:  The last time Enns picked up a big league win, he struck out Tigers Jeimer Candelario, Eric Haase and Dustin Garneau over four innings of one-run ball for the Rays to outpitch Detroit starter Tyler Alexander. That was Sept. 16, 2021 at Tropicana Field.

Enns has had a long journey since then, two seasons in Japan, another in Korea, before coming back on a Minor League deal with Detroit. But as he shut down the Athletics for five innings of one-hit ball in an 8-0 Tigers win at Comerica Park, it was well worth the 1,371 days between big league appearances.

Enns' 2,877-day gap between starts is one of the longest this century, trailing longtime Major League closer Jim Johnson, who went 4,427 days between starts from July 29, 2006, to Sept. 11, 2018.

“But who's counting,” Enns said with a smile.

This was always the goal, Enns said, even when he took his game halfway around the world. However long it took, in time or distance, he wanted to get back to the big leagues. He took lessons from overseas, just as he did from the Tigers’ pitching department in Spring Training.

As he took the mound, he tried to fall back on his routine to keep his emotions in check, even if the a couple dozen friends and family who made the drive from his hometown of Frankfort, Ill., and former Central Michigan teammates from around the state and the Midwest could not.

“Very excited,” his younger brother, Daniel, told FanDuel Sports Detroit. “We were all the way up here [emotionally] the whole time, but for him, it’s another day. He’s been doing this [for Triple-A] Toledo all year.” 

Dietrich Enns' brother joins the broadcast.

The Tigers called up Enns for what could be a spot start before Reese Olson’s return, rewarding Enns for a 2.89 ERA and 10.3 strikeouts per nine innings over 14 starts with Toledo. The 34-year-old took his fastball-changeup combination, flipped some curveballs and made it work against an A’s lineup that included just four hitters who were active in the Majors when Enns debuted in 2017, and in front of a Tigers defense that included four players who weren’t active when Enns last pitched in the Majors.

“I told him before the game, ‘If we can just mix [pitches] from the start, we’re going to have a really good day,’” catcher Jake Rogers said. “And he did a really good job of just being in the zone with all his pitches and giving me the reins. He kept them off-balance going in, up, down if he needed to, changeups down. He was in the zone with everything, which makes it a lot easier.”

The changeup is partly a Tigers creation, a “kick change” that combines the spin of a traditional changeup with the movement of a splitter. He had a 40-percent whiff rate with it against Triple-A hitters, and he got five whiffs on 14 swings with it Thursday, setting up his fastball for seven more.“Early in Spring Training, they were like, 'Hey, try this out,'” Enns recalled. “And then [pitching director] Gabe [Ribas] brought the idea to me and started me working on that. I really liked the shape right away, and then they just gave me some confidence to go out there and throw it. That really helped a lot.”

Max Schuemann’s third-inning ground ball to short was Enns’ lone hit allowed. He walked Denzel Clarke after that to create a scoring opportunity, but escaped with a Brent Rooker double play. The lone Athletic to hit a ball to an outfielder off of Enns was Jacob Wilson, who flew out to right field twice. Their 11 balls in play averaged just 81 mph in exit velocity.

“That was incredible,” manager A.J. Hinch said. “Good for him, and obviously good for our team and good for the organization. A lot of people contributed to this moment, but Dietrich stayed under control, stayed within himself from all the excitement and delivered a great performance when we really needed it.”

“When I signed with the Tigers, I envisioned this as a possibility,” Enns said. “I'm just happy that it's happening.” (Jason Beck - 6/26/2025 - MLB.com)

Sept 27, 2025: Enns was on the paternity list.

TRANSACTIONS

June 2012: The Yankees chose Enns in the 19th round, out of Univ. of Central Michigan.

July 30, 2017: The Twins traded LHP Jaime Garcia to the Yankees for LHP Dietrich Enns and RHP Zack Littell.

Dec. 5, 2018: The Padres signed Enns to a minor league contract.

Aug 18, 2020: The Rays organization signed free agent Enns.

Nov. 18, 2021: The lefty who was signed out of an independent league was released and headed to a team in Japan.

Jan. 7, 2025: The Tigers signed Enns to a minor league deal.

Enns, a lefthander, has an 89-94 mph 2-seam sinking FASTBALL and a decent CURVEBALL. His best pitch is his CHANGEUP, a pitch that he still maintains the same grip he's had since high school. It is a 60 grade offering on the 20-80 scouting scale. That change induces soft contact.

Coming out of the bullpen, his heater reaches 95 mph, tops, usually at 91-93 mph.

2017 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 62.8% of the time; Change 15.1%; and Slider 22.1% of the time.

2018, 2019, and 2020 Season Pitch Usage:  Did not pitch.

2021 Season Pitch Usage: 4-seam Fastball: 60.8% of the time; Change 1.8%; Slider 37.1%; and his Curve less than 1% of the time. Average velocity: 4-seam 94.9 mph, Change Slider 86, Slider 86.1, and Curve 76.2 mph.

Dietrich is effective against both righties a lefties, so he doesn't have to be funneled into the LOOGY category like so many lefties of today.

“He’s a soft tosser with a good understanding of touch and feel,” a scout who saw Enns pitch in 2016 said. “He’s crafty. He knows how to pitch. He sat 89-91 (mph).’’

2023-24 Seasons: Enns has pitched a total of 26⅓ innings throughout his MLB career in 2017 and 2021, but he spent the past three seasons in Asia, pitching in Japan for the Saitama Seibu Lions in 2022-23 and in Korea for the LG Twins in 2024.

He registered a 3.62 ERA across 130⅓ innings in 25 games in 2022 (Japan), a 3.59 ERA across 120⅓ innings in 23 games in 2023 (Japan) and a 4.19 ERA across 167⅔ innings in 30 games in 2024 (Korea).

In 2024, Enns worked exclusively as a starting pitcher in Korea as the Opening Day starter for the LG Twins.

He threw more innings in 2024 than ever before in college and professional careers, spanning 14 seasons. Along with a 4.19 ERA, he had a 13-6 record with 50 walks (7% walk rate) and 157 strikeouts (22% strikeout rate). (Evan Petzold - Jan. 7, 2025)

August 8-Sept. 18, 2013: Enns was on the D.L.

May 26-Sept. 18, 2014: Dietrich was on the D.L. for most of the season following Tommy John surgery.

April 9-July 12, 2015: Enns spent most of the season on the D.L. while recovering from Tommy John surgery.

April 14-June 30, 2017: Dietrich was on the DL.

Aug 17, 2017: Enns was on the DL with left shoulder strain.

May 24-31, 2025: In the minors, Dietrich was on the 7-day IL.