The Detroit Tigers are swapping relievers.
The roster moves: Left-handed reliever Enmanuel De Jesus has been optioned to Triple-A Toledo, while right-handed reliever Burch Smith has been called up.
The Tigers made the switch Wednesday, April 22, before the second of three games in their series against the Milwaukee Brewers at Comerica Park. The Tigers transferred left-handed reliever Bailey Horn (left elbow discomfort) to the 60-day injured list, opening a spot for Smith on the 40-man roster.
Smith, 36, owns a 5.79 ERA across 247⅓ innings in his 152-game MLB career, spanning six seasons with seven teams.
In Tuesday’s 12-4 loss, De Jesus imploded in the seventh and eighth innings against the Brewers.
The 29-year-old allowed seven runs (five earned) on seven hits and two walks with one strikeout over 1⅓ innings, throwing 49 pitches. He also made a critical throwing error in the seventh that led to two runs, turning a 3-1 deficit into a 5-1 deficit.
Before getting sent down, De Jesus registered a 10.13 ERA across eight innings in six games.
Meanwhile, Smith had been dominating at the Triple-A level. He posted a 1.80 ERA with zero walks and 16 strikeouts across 10 innings in eight games for the Mud Hens.
His fastball averaged 94.1 mph with a 34.1% whiff rate.
This story will be updated.
Contact Evan Petzold at epetzold@freepress.com or follow him @EvanPetzold.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Tigers option Enmanuel De Jesus to Triple-A; Burch Smith called up
Reporting by Evan Petzold, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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