VIERA, Fla. -- Eddie Bonine, who hasn't been mentioned as a candidate for the Detroit Tigers pitching staff, may make the team as a reliever.
"He's been tremendous," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said Monday. "He's a different pitcher out of the bullpen than as a starter. He's done very well. "He's got that knuckleball. He knows he's not out there long so he throws harder out of the bullpen."
Bonine was 2-1 with a 5.40 ERA in five starts last year as a June call-up, and went on the disabled list Aug. 11 with a right shoulder strain. He was 12-4 with a 4.15 ERA for Toledo, and there was some question as to whether he had the velocity and stuff to pitch in the majors.
Leyland said Bonine will start Thursday's game against the Toronto Blue Jays but will be limited to two innings. That is Edwin Jackson's day to throw, but Leyland does not want Toronto seeing too much of him.
Jackson faced the Blue Jays in his last start and will start the season's second game in Toronto. He will pitch in a camp game Thursday.
Bonine is one of those feel-good roster stories. He was not given much of a chance to make the team, but Leyland said at the start of camp that the 12 best pitchers would make the club. Bonine appears to have earned a spot and a new role.
He has allowed one run on 11 hits in 14 innings (0.63 ERA) and has three saves with seven strikeouts and three walks.
Bonine said he has benefited from working with new pitching coach Rick Knapp and bullpen coach Jeff Jones.
"Me, Knappy and Jones worked hard on getting me a comfortable delivery with a lot of early workouts," Bonine said. "That has given me a chance to be more consistent and better.
"Now, I've got a strong base, and the strong position I'm getting into has made a big difference. You can't be crazy mechanically and pound the strike zone."
Bonine, 27, came to the Tigers from the San Diego Padres in the minor league phase of the 2005 Rule 5 draft. He was removed from Detroit's 40-man roster in January, when reliever Brandon Lyon was signed, and is in training camp as a non-roster invitee.
He is one of six pitchers vying for the last four spots. The others are starter Rick Porcello and relievers Ryan Perry, Clay Rapada, Juan Rincon and Scott Williamson.
Perry picked up his first save of the spring Monday in a 3-2 win against the Washington Nationals. He has a 0.84 ERA with 11 strikeouts in 10 2/3 innings.
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