Bonine Draws Short Straw

Or just nevermind with all that speculation in my last post.

The Tigers announced today that RHP Eddie Bonine will be returning to AAA Toledo in order to clear a spot on the active roster for the newly acquired Aubrey Huff.  Bonine was in his third stint with the big club this season, but hadn’t made an appearance since his recall last week.  The move will leave the Tigers with an 11 man pitching staff.

The Tigers have gone with an 11 man staff for just one game this year, so an additional roster move may be forthcoming to add an extra arm, but for now, the Tigers have a fully rested bullpen so they can get away with carrying an extra bat.  I would still expect that another arm would be added in the near future, but for now, Ryan Raburn’s roster spot is safe.

Cleaning up some other news, RHP Chris Lambert, who was sent out when Bonine was recalled last week, has been demoted again.  Lambert is a former first round pick of the Cardinals who was acquired in a 2007 trade for Mike Maroth.  After a handful of poor relief outings with the Tigers this year, today Lambert was designated for assignment to clear room on the 40 man roster for newly signed draft choice Jacob Turner, who signed a major league contract late Monday.

Also in the news today, Ivan Rodriguez is back with the Texas Rangers.  The Rangers made a deal with the Astros to bring their former catcher back to where his career began almost 20 years ago.  The future Hall of Famer was played with the Rangers, Marlins, Tigers, and Yankees before signing on with Houston this past spring.

For my money, Pudge is the best catcher I ever saw play, and his free aganet signing with Detroit in 2004 served as a turning point for the franchise.  The Tigers were historically bad in 2003 while Pudge and the Marlins were winning a title.  Pudge opened the door to respectability for the Tigers.  For that, he should always be remembered.  And thanked.