In his rundown of notable minor leaguers in today's Detroit News, Lynn Henning wrote that left-hander Casey Fossum "easily could be pitching for the Tigers right now." Evidently, the team agreed with that assertion because Fossum has been called up from Triple-A Toledo.
In 11 games (four starts) with the Mud Hens, Fossum has posted a 3-0 record with a 1.96 ERA, along with 48 strikeouts in 46 innings. When the Tigers signed Fossum in early April, the move didn't make a lot of sense to me, as there didn't seem to be a spot for him on the major league roster unless he was projected as a left-handed reliever. But as we know all too well, things haven't exactly worked as planned with Detroit's pitching staff two months into the season.
The obvious follow-up question to Fossum's promotion, of course, is who gets sent down to clear a spot for him? Francisco Cruceta hasn't looked very good in his last three appearances. Billfer thinks Bobby Seay might be injured, judging from his recent performances, and could go to the DL. Any other candidates?