Bruce Rondon, Tigers’ bullpen impressive in win over Red Sox

12:55 AM ET

BOSTON – On a night when the Detroit Tigers needed a strong-willed performance from its bullpen to clamp down a seesaw, offensive affair, the club leaned on the usual suspects in the final two innings. Setup man Shane Greene, who has carved out an essential niche, delivered a nice-and-tidy 1-2-3 inning. Closer Francisco Rodriguez, who earned a four-out save the night before, recorded the final three outs in the ninth, racking up his 29th save of the season.

The contributions of those two pitchers have been vital in exorcising some of the demons of Tigers bullpens past, giving the back end a distinctly resolute feel – one that has been lacking in recent years.

And though Justin Wilson has often been a part of that equation this season, it was Bruce Rondon who received rave reviews for his contributions in Tuesday’s 9-8 white-knuckle win against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.

“I thought Rondon looked as good as we’ve seen him all year,” manager Brad Ausmus said. “I know it was just one inning of work, but that was the best we’ve seen him.”

The Tigers won’t be mesmerized by a mere inning of work, however. Their hope is that Rondon can pitch like he did on Tuesday with some semblance of consistency, but that has been his biggest struggle thus far.

Rondon, 25, has not progressed in a straight line. His professionalism and maturity were called into question last season, when he was sent down for “work ethic issues,” yet he has had no reported transgressions since returning to the club this year. On the mound, …

continue reading in source espn.go.com