DETROIT — The afternoon started with rumors that the Detroit Tigers were going to bolster their bullpen with the addition of a left-handed reliever.

They eventually did, recalling the injury assignment of Pat McCoy from Triple-A Toledo.

Not really what you envisioned? That feeling is probably universal.

While the Tigers did not pull of a trade deadline deal to reinforce the bullpen, they did make a minor move in the aftermath of the afternoon’s blockbuster deal, bringing McCoy off the disabled list, and sending fellow lefty Ian Krol to Triple-A Toledo to work on his issues.

“We want to send Krol out and get him some additional work that we talked about, and try to get him back to the pitcher we know he can be,” general manager Dave Dombrowski said.

Krol started the season pretty well, before hurting his shoulder in late June. Even once he got the inflammation cleared out, and returned to the Tigers in early July, he hasn’t been quite the same.

“I don’t know if there’s necessarily a particular thing he has to do to get back on track. His velocity’s been down a tick. Even after coming off the DL, we thought that rest might help but his velocity’s been down a tick. I think as a result, he’s a little bit more trepidatious around the strike zone with his pitches. I think when he was throwing a little bit harder, he attacked the hitters a little more. He probably should get back to that,” manager Brad Ausmus said.

“I think pitchers sometimes, when they feel their velocity is down, they try to be more careful with their pitches. If you feel like you don’t have quite the finish on your pitches, you feel like you have to locate a little bit better.”

Krol has an ERA of 9.00 since returning from the disabled list, allowing opponents a .400 batting average against, and an OPS of .955, hitting a line drive nearly half the time they put the ball in play.