With just two games to go before the Tigers break camp on Thursday afternoon, Jim Leyland still has several major decisions to make regarding his pitching staff.
        Rookie Rick Porcello still isn’t on the team. But he isn’t off it, either.
        Nate Robertson still isn’t on the team. But he isn’t off it, either.
        “You’re not going to get any information out of me because I don’t have any answers,” Leyland said before meeting with his coaches and the front office staff to discuss that very subject.
        Both pitchers enhanced their chances of joining the Tigers’ rotation in Tuesday’s rain-interrupted  7-2 loss to the Washington Nationals.
        But at this juncture, I would say Porcello is definitely ahead.
        Porcello, rebounding from his worst outing of the spring last Thursday, breezed through the first five innings, throwing just 53 pitches and limiting the  Nationals to one run on two hits. But he was struck on the right side, underneath his arm, with a line drive in the fifth  and left the game, strictly for precautionary reasons, at the end of the inning.
        However, Porcello then went to bullpen where he threw 15 more pitches, the equivalent of another inning.
        “He’s fine, but I wasn’t going to take any chances,” Leyland said. “Just watching him today you would never believe he was really wild last time out. He was a strike-thrower today.”
        Robertson, in his first appearance since he sprained his left thumb, worked the final three innings and was nailed for five runs on six hits, including a couple of homers.
        But Leyland said later, “You almost have to throw that one out,”  because Robertson was pitching out of the bullpen and his stint was interrupted by a 30-minute rain delay.
        “We’re down to the nitty-gritty,” Leyland said. “Who knows what might happen now.”
        In other moves Tuesday, the Tigers placed Jeremy Bonderman on the 15-day disabled list where he joins fellow pitchers Joel Zumaya and Dontrelle Willis, and sent Clete Thomas, Timo Perez and Will Rhymes to minor league camp.
        Leyland went over to Tigertown Tuesday morning to watch Zumaya pitch in a minor league game against the Houston Astros Class A farm club.
        “He really looked good,” Leyland said.
        “I got excited _ but let’s not get too excited,” the manager cautioned.
        According to Leyland, Zumaya’s fastball was clocked at 97 mph.