Tigers' bullpen needs help. It's getting some from unlikely place

PITTSBURGH – The Detroit Tigers need bullpen help, right? On the other hand, doesn’t everybody? 

Well, maybe except the Boston Red Sox, who carry the best bullpen ERA – and WHIP rate – in the American League. Go ahead, toss the New York Yankees in there, too. They’re second in bullpen ERA and WHIP. 

And third? 

Hmmm. Would you believe it’s the Detroit Tigers? 

Surprising, eh? 

Surprising because they’ve blown so many leads – they lead the American League in that category with 26.  

How to make sense of this? Partly, it’s a matter of opportunity. The Tigers have held a lot of leads after the seventh inning. And partly because the bullpen has mostly held it down when the team is leading in blowouts (though Monday's win got dicey).  

All those 8-0 and 7-1 wins? They help the bullpen's ERA. So it’s a little deceptive. And yet, the bullpen has been a little steadier lately, in part because Kenley Jansen is finding a groove in the ninth, as is Tyler Holton – other than a hiccup against the White Sox. Then again who didn’t hiccup against them? 

And partly because Drew Sommers is starting to throw strikes, and when the lefty pounds the zone, his sinker and slider (it acts like a sweeper) are confounding hitters.  

Sommers helped the Tigers get out of trouble Monday, Aug. 17, in the series opener against the Pirates and did the same in San Francisco in the series finale, helping the team win in extra innings. 

Not only has he cut down on walks, but he’s also starting to strike guys out, as he did three times Monday night. His whiff rate – 34.1% – is elite, and helpful to A.J. Hinch, who doesn’t have many swing-and-miss relievers to go to at the moment. 

“The biggest step forward for him is he’s been a strike thrower – a dominant strike thrower,” said Hinch. “Not only on Pitch 1, but overall in his ability to get it over the plate. It’s a tough look for guys. They don’t pick up the ball and as his stuff has ticked up, the leverage on the hitter has gone through the roof.” 

And? 

“Once you get leverage on a hitter, you get more swing-and-miss; you get more punch outs, a lot better outcomes.” 

Hinch said Sommers got a little unlucky with the seeing-eye single in the home game against Chicago. 

“Other than that, he’s been pretty flawless,” he said. “There’s a walk in there every now and then, but not near at the clip as it was when he first got up here (last season). Again, letting these guys grow up and learn and settle in ... it’s an important lesson.” 

WINDSOR: Detroit Tigers rookies demonstrating what matters this season

Hao-Yu Lee, the Tigers’ rookie infielder, set a record for most Major League hits for a Taiwanese player Monday night. He went 3-for-3, giving him 55 hits, one more than former Taiwanese Major Leaguer Yu Chang. 

Chang came to a Nike camp when Lee was a high schooler in Taiwan, and Lee told Chang he’d see him in five years.  

It’s been five years. 

“I didn’t really feel anything,” Lee said of his record-breaking hit. “My role is not to be the best Taiwanese player; I want to be a great player in America.” 

Hinch told reporters Monday that outfielder/DH Kerry Carpenter recently saw a foot specialist and will need more time to recover from plantar fasciitis. The Tigers are pausing his rehab, Hinch said. The club is hopeful he will return before season’s end.  

Carpenter was placed on the 10-day injured list on July 27.  

Outfielder Trei Cruz cleared waivers and has been assigned to Triple-A Toledo. James Outman and Wenceel Perez are also in Toledo to do baseball work as they recover from a concussion and an orbital bone injury, respectively. 

Neither will play in games there. Brant Hurter will get a rehab start there. The lefty reliever has been working his way back from lumbar spine inflammation. He was placed on the injured list in May.

And, finally, catcher Dillon Dingler was supposed to get the night off Tuesday. It will be his first non-start since early July.  

Contact Shawn Windsor: swindsor@freepress.com. Follow him @shawnwindsor.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Tigers' bullpen needs help. It's getting some from unlikely place