DETROIT -- When the Detroit Tigers acquired Rafael Montero from the Atlanta Braves at the trade deadline last month , they got a veteran reliever trying to reinvent himself with a pitch he didn’t even throw a year ago.

A native of the Dominican Republic, Montero has pitched in 362 games over parts of 11 major league seasons with five teams. For most of that time, the split-finger fastball (splitter) was not in his arsenal.

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