The Tigers have designated right-hander Chad Smith for assignment to clear room on the 40-man roster for the newly re-signed Joba Chamberlain, GM Dave Dombrowski tells Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press (Twitter link).
The 25-year-old Smith had his Major League debut with the Tigers in 2014, yielding seven runs on 15 hits and three walks with nine strikeouts in 11 2/3 innings of work. A 17th-round pick of the Tigers back in 2011, Smith has a career 2.68 ERA in the minor leagues with 8.8 K/9 and 2.6 BB/9. After working as a starter for part of his first minor league season, he transitioned to the bullpen in 2013 and has posted solid numbers since, though he did struggle in 27 innings at the Triple-A level last year.
