This is more of a fun chance for a conspiracy theory that anything else.
Last night, Charlie Furbush came into the Toledo Mud Hens' game in relief of Andy Oliver, as we noted briefly. Toledo Blade reporter John Wagner hoped to find out some more information after the game, but speculated it was essentially a live side-session. Pitchers always do some work a couple days before their next start. With an extra off-day, maybe that's wat Furbush was doing.
Wagner (and apparently John Paul Morosi was at the game) asked Hens manager Phil Nevin about it. Nevin's response? He used Furbush because the Tigers told him to. No further comment, except to say Fu-Te Ni will start Tuesday in place of Furbush.
Well it's certainly in the Tigers' prerogative to withhold information, but it does little to keep the mind from spinning in a thousand -- well, three or four -- different directions of speculation. Maybe that's what they wanted. In the morning, GM Dave Dombrowski reveals his intentions -- separate post on that forthcoming -- and in the evening he hides them.
So, the possible reasons:
1) Furbush was getting side work in and/or Tigers management wanted to take one last look at his stuff before giving him another chance in the majors. The fact he is no longer scheduled to start on Tuesday hints this is a likely scenario.
2) Furbush is returning to the bullpen in Detroit. Well, if he's not starting he might be relieving. In any case it sounds like Toledo does not expect him to be a Mud Hen come Tuesday.
3) Furbush is on somebody's trade radar and they wanted to look at him on the mound sooner rather than later to help get a trade done. But that doesn't explain the change of Tuesday's start. In any case scouts are looking at a lot of people all the time in the minors and majors at this time of year.
Whatever the situation, Furbush walked a batter and gave up a two-run home run, while recording 19 pitches.