The Tigers sent reliever Bruce Rondon home due to his 'effort level'

We've reached the point in the baseball season where, if you play on a bad team, it can be tough to get motivated for games. This concept isn't anything new. When a club is bad, players may quit on their manager, and start giving less than optimal effort during games. It can lead to some toxic situations, and renders games unwatchable, but it does happen.

That said, we've never seen anything like this before.

The Detroit Tigers sent closer Bruce Rondon home for the rest of the season due to his "effort level." That's something! Manager Brad Ausmus didn't elaborate much on his reasons for the move, but catcher Alex Avila added some insight to the situation.

So, yeah, that seems less than optimal. Players will rarely speak out against each other unless the situation is dire, so it appears some in the locker room may have agreed with Ausmus' decision.

Rondon will finish the year with poor numbers. The 24-year-old posted a 5.81 ERA over 31 innings. Curiously, Rondon's lack of effort didn't necessarily lead to worse numbers. Since the All-Star break, Rondon has posted a 4.50 ERA. That's not great, but considering his first half ERA was 7.62, it was an improvement.

Given Avila's comments, it seems likely Rondon's issues have to do with preparation, or dedication away from the field. That's complete speculation, but it makes sense considering Rondon's numbers weren't bad enough to justify the move.

It also speaks volumes that Ausmus was allowed to make this move. The front office has already admitted Ausmus will be evaluated at the end of the season, and there have already been reports that he's going to be fired. To allow a lame-duck manager to send a player home like this means someone higher up than Ausmus probably agreed with the decision.

That's probably not a good sign for Rondon's future with the club. The reliever is under team control through 2019, but he might spend the rest of his career elsewhere. There's always a chance this is a wake-up call, and Rondon gets his act together, but, if not, he's going to find himself on another club next season.

Rondon showed a fair amount of promise as a rookie, posting a 3.45 ERA over 28 1/3 innings while striking out 30 batters. That ability could lead to another team taking a shot on the reliever, though his trade value is pretty much sunk following the decision to send him home.