SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -The Detroit Tigers activated setup man Fernando Rodney from the disabled list Monday and manager Jim Leyland was eager to work him into a game as soon as possible.
“Yeah, to see what he looks like,” Leyland said before the Tigers opened a three-game interleague series with the San Francisco Giants. “I don’t know exactly how I’ll use Rodney, whether in a big-game situation. I’d like to get his feet wet for an inning. It was nice to put his name on the card. It’s been a while.”
Rodney, a 31-year-old right-hander, had missed the entire season with shoulder problems, as has fellow setup man Joel Zumaya. Both pitchers had been on injury rehab assignments with Triple-A Toledo.
Zumaya was scheduled to pitch Monday night for Toledo and Leyland said the hard-throwing right-hander could rejoin the Tigers by this weekend.
Rodney is eager to get on the mound. He appeared in four games for Toledo, going 1-0 with a 6.75 ERA and eight strikeouts in 5 1-3 innings.
“I feel ready to go, whenever he gives me the ball,” Rodney said. “I’ve shown I’m ready to go and I want to help my team win. I think this is the best time for me now because this is more the time the team needs me.”
It’s been a long haul for Rodney getting back. An initial MRI exam showed inflammation in the shoulder and he thought he would be out just 15 days.
“I feel comfortable,” said Rodney, who has spent all five of his major league seasons with the Tigers. “It was tough at the beginning because I didn’t really know what was wrong. They sent me for a second opinion but then they said there was nothing negative in there and with 10 days of rest it would be OK.”
To clear roster room for Rodney, the Tigers optioned right-hander Aquilino Lopez to Toledo on Sunday.
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