Brieske would have come in with the score 3-1 if the Tigers hadn’t scored twice in the top of the eighth, though it’s hard to say whether he still would have been given a chance to complete the save in that event. He does have one save in eight appearances since coming off the IL earlier this month. He struck out two in finishing off the Cardinals today.

Tigers’ skipper A.J. Hinch continues to mix and match in the late innings to get the matchups that he wants and on Friday it was Brieske that he wanted to dispatch of the middle of the Jays’ lineup. He started the inning off strong, getting Alejandro Kirk on a fly ball to center and Addison Barger on a bouncer back to the mound. Things got interesting though as he allowed singles to Myles Straw and Michael Stefanic to put the tying run in scoring position. Not to fear though as Brieske rebounded to get Ernie Clement on a comebacker to end it. He’s probably third in line for save chances in the team’s bullpen, but that will still afford him the occasional save opportunity.

Brieske ended up missing the minimum time required on the injured list with ankle inflammation. The 27-year-old will be a key cog for the Detroit bullpen now that he’s healthy.