Tigers starter Shane Greene, reliever Angel Nesbitt optioned to Triple-A Toledo

DETROIT -- On Thursday the Detroit Tigers announced that left-handed pitcher Ian Krol would be recalled from Triple-A Toledo, with a corresponding move to be made the following day prior to the game. That move will be right-handed starter Shane Greene being optioned to Toledo, a source told Bless You Boys. Additionally, when Justin Verlander returns to the rotation on Saturday, Angel Nesbitt will be demoted to the Mud Hens as well.

Update: Both moves were confirmed by the Tigers Friday.

Greene has struggled ever since his first three starts of the season. Despite attempting to find a solution, including working on his arm slot, Greene and the Tigers have not found one. With Greene in the Tigers rotation, he's doing more harm than good at this point, putting the entire team at risk for a loss and taxing a bullpen, which has contributed to a few off-days of late. Sending Greene to Toledo to gather himself, get a mental break and refocus is the necessary move, and the correct one.

With the pending return of Verlander to the rotation, Nesbitt becomes the odd man out. While he started out strong in the bullpen, Nesbitt has struggled to strand runners or put up a clean inning regardless of the point in the game. Nesbitt was a pleasant surprise out of spring training, emerging as an unexpected source of strength. But he's gotten away from that, whether due to his mechanics or if he's just mentally taxed. A break will do him good, as well.

Getting Verlander back should restore some stability in the starting rotation as it's been posting troublesome numbers of late, with the exception of David Price and Alfredo Simon. The Tigers can wish for better results all they want, but without solid starters, it's hard to take a win. Sending Greene and Nesbitt down and bringing fresh arms up should help right the ship and hopefully get the Tigers back on-track.