Kansas City, Mo. — It seemed funny earlier in the day.
When the Tigers activated Michael Fulmer from the injured list Monday, and optioned infielder Isaac Paredes back to Toledo, they had 11 relievers on the active roster. Eleven. And just two extra position players.
Then starter Matthew Boyd had to leave the game in the third inning Monday night and the move looked prescient. With Boyd gone early, it became the Tigers’ fourth bullpen game in five days. The bullpen had eaten up 28.1 innings over the four previous games and now had to cover another 6.2.
All arms on deck.
Boyd gave up back-to-back singles with one out in the third. He jogged to back-up third base on the second single and didn’t look comfortable. When he got back to the mound, he motioned for head athletic trainer Doug Teter. The conversation was brief. Boyd’s night was over.
The Tigers announced that Boyd was experiencing left arm discomfort and was being evaluated further.
Joe Jimenez, working his fourth game in five days, struck out Salvador Perez and got Jorge Soler to end the inning.
Boyd left a start early on April 29 with left knee tendonitis, and missed one start after that. He labored through his last couple of starts and manager AJ Hinch decided to push this start back and give him an extra day of rest. That created the bullpen game on Sunday against the White Sox.
Twitter: @cmccosky