Tigers will give Bruce Rondon first shot at closer role

Gabe Lacques, USA TODAY Sports | USATODAY

The Detroit Tigers are prepared to defend their American League pennant with a closer who's never thrown a pitch in the major leagues.

General manager Dave Dombrowski says the club won't add any free agent arms to its current group of relievers and will head to spring training in 12 days aiming for 22-year-old Venezuelan Bruce Rondon to win the closer's job.

Rondon will vie for the departed Jose Valverde's role with a group of veterans led by left-hander Phil Coke along with right-handers Joaquin Benoit and Octavio Dotel.

But Dombrowski made it clear that Rondon winning the job would be the club's preference.

"We're not anointing him the closer, but we're hopeful he'll take the job in spring training," Dombrowski told USA TODAY Sports on Thursday. "He's got a quality, quality arm, his breaking stuff is much improved, he has that mentality, that golden arm."

Rondon's fastball, Dombrowski says, usually sits around 100 mph, often topping that, and he was dominant at three levels in 2012. Rondon struck out 66 in 53 innings - giving up just 32 hits - during a year that began at high-A Lakeland (Fla.), included stops at Class AA Erie (Pa.) and AAA Toledo, and nearly finished with a September call-up to Detroit.

Now, he may be closing games for a club that's even more stacked than when it won the AL pennant in 2012. The Tigers will add Victor Martinez - back from knee injury - to protect Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera and Prince Fielder in the middle of the lineup.

And a rotation that goes six-deep, led by Justin Verlander, may turn its leads over to a man who has yet to grace the Comerica Park mound.

Dombrowski believes Rondon is up to the task.

"There's some guys that like the ball in the ninth inning, that won't be intimidated, that will go after you," Dombrowski said, "and they also have quality stuff. You don't have too many guys who throw the ball the way he does.

"He never has been intimidated. He has that overall closer mentality - you give the ball in the ninth inning, I'll close it down for you.''