Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2008

Pasco's Bonderman on mend after surgery

By Jack Millikin, Herald staff writer

Jeremy Bonderman didn't spend much time in the minor leagues, landing in the Detroit Tigers starting rotation after just one year at the Class A level.

But the 6-foot, 190-pound Pasco native sat comfortably behind home plate at Gesa Stadium on Monday, embracing the minor-league atmosphere and watching the Tri-City Dust Devils beat the Eugene Emeralds 3-2.

Bonderman had surgery in Dallas on June 30 to repair a blood clot in his right shoulder, and the Tigers gave him permission to return to his old stomping grounds following the procedure.

"They told me to go home," said Bonderman, who has been in Pasco since early July and began rehabilitation last week. He will return to Detroit on Sunday to join his Tigers teammates and is optimistic he will return at full strength for spring training in 2009.

"There's a chance I could come back by the end of this season, but probably not," he said.

Bonderman hasn't pitched since June 1 -- getting a no-decision in Detroit's 7-5 win over Seattle -- but amid the backdrop of an impressive pitching duel between Tri-City's Parker Frazier and Eugene's Geoff Vandel, he found himself back in the familiar role of trying to out-think hitters.

"I was telling my buddy that if (Frazier) threw this pitch here, then the hitter would have no chance," said Bonderman, who has become accustomed to the flow of a major league game. "It's a lot slower pace, and players are still getting used to wood bats."

Bonderman, 25, admitted it's been tough to sit idly by while the Tigers are fighting desperately for a playoff spot. But the right-hander has had a lot of emotional support from his teammates -- including pitcher Kenny Rogers, who had similar surgery before the 2007 season -- and his wife, Amber.

"My wife has been a big part of it," he said.

Bonderman was 5-2 with a 3.60 ERA in his final year at Pasco and remains the only player ever to be drafted following his junior year of high school. He passed his GED and was drafted by the Oakland Athletics with the 26th overall pick in the 2002 First-Year Player Draft, spending much of the season with the A's Advanced Class A club in Modesto, Calif.

But the Tigers, who were in a rebuilding phase at the time, were looking for strong, young arms to build its future, and traded for Bonderman at midseason. He combined with Modesto and the Tigers' Class A team in Lakeland, Fla., to go 9-9 with a 3.80 ERA in his first taste of professional ball.

"I didn't do as well as I wanted in my first year," he said. "Looking back, I have a lot of great memories of those guys. When you go on the road a lot and you're living four to five players to a household, you get really close."

In 2003, he had reached the pinnacle of professional baseball, where he has compiled a 59-66 record with a 4.74 ERA over six seasons with the Tigers.

Bonderman began his career on an inauspicious note, going 6-19 in 2003 and nearly became the first pitcher since 1980 to lose 20 games in a season. But he had at least 10 victories in each of his next four seasons and nearly made the American League All-Star team in 2007, finishing second in the final fan voting.

He was 3-4 with a 4.29 ERA this season before going on the disabled list June 7.