AJ Hinch's comments on Brenan Hanifee make dubious Tigers roster move even weirder

Brenan Hanifee was recalled to the Tigers' major league roster on Sunday, after spending the minimum 15 days in Triple-A. His demotion on Aug. 2 in order to make room for Charlie Morton on the 26-man roster was a move that felt completely random and unwarranted; he gave up two runs (only one earned) in 2/3 innings the night before, but had otherwise been stellar out of the Tigers' bullpen throughout July. (And to add insult to injury, the Tigers had just named him one of their July Relievers of the Month).

Brant Hurter, one of the few lefties in the Tigers' pen, was sent to Triple-A to make room for Hanifee after pitching a hitless inning against the Twins on Friday.

Of Hanifee's return to the majors, manager AJ Hinch said, "There were a lot of moving parts at the time which we sent him down. He was having a good season. It wasn't an option that involved a ton of development focus. We were kind of counting the days to get him back."

That still doesn't explain why the Tigers made the questionable decision to send him down in the first place. And if they were counting down the days to get him back, then why did they do it?!

AJ Hinch talks more on Tigers' decision to demote Brenan Hanifee

Hanifee was responsible for giving up the Phillies' game-tying and then go-ahead runs the day before he was optioned, but Tyler Holton was just as responsible for letting Philadelphia come back from 3-0 deficit to tie the game. It feels like the Tigers sort of just needed someone to take the fall and bite the bullet for the Morton roster move, and Holton was the only lefty in the bullpen at the time, so they needed to hang onto him despite all of his struggles this season.

The Tigers have continued to make these weird choices with the roster, including sending down Sawyer Gipson-Long right after he came back from a long IL stint (and after a standout performance in long relief).

Detroit has mostly seemed to figure out their bullpen woes in the last two weeks, and are less so in the same uncomfortable position they were in at the time when Hanifee was optioned. Holton and Tommy Kahnle are still struggling significantly, but even Rafael Montero has gained some trust after notching his first win in the Tigers' victory over the Twins on Friday.

Why he was ever sent down in the first place is likely to remain a mystery, but bringing Hanifee back was the only correct decision for the Tigers to make.