Rondon expected to throw Tuesday

DETROIT -- Bruce Rondon's last pitch in a game was a 102-mph fastball to strikeout Red Sox slugger David Ortiz on Sept. 2. Since then, he's been dealing with some tenderness in his right elbow and has been unavailable out of the bullpen.

"He's OK, no red flags, but we backed him off," manager Jim Leyland said. "He's going to, I believe, throw tomorrow."

Leyland said symptoms of pain in Rondon's elbow developed about a week ago. Before his final pitch to Ortiz, he threw a 103-mph fastball for a strike, his fastest pitch of the season.

Since August, Rondon has a 1.32 ERA, allowing two runs on 11 hits in 13 2/3 innings while striking out 15 and walking six.