DETROIT -- The Tigers plan on Ryan Perry closing games at Double-A Erie. They've also given manager Jim Leyland clearance to have Perry open the season in Detroit if he thinks he's ready.

Welcome to the world of a highly touted relief prospect for the Tigers in the Joel Zumaya era. Talent, as Leyland likes to say, is talent.

Three years have quickly passed since the Tigers took youngsters Zumaya and Justin Verlander north with them out of Spring Training and watched them help Detroit all the way to the World Series. When Leyland announced Zumaya would make the jump from the Triple-A Toledo rotation, he proclaimed that not only would the 21-year-old pitch out of the bullpen, but he would "pitch in some huge situations."

The rest is part of the history of that 2006 run. With the Tigers looking at uncertainties up and down the bullpen, from Zumaya's shoulder rehab to the mercurial Fernando Rodney's control to openings in middle and long relief, it's worth at least wondering if history could repeat itself.

"If we run into another Verlander or Zumaya," Leyland said last week, "he'll be on the team."

Perry is a little older than Zumaya was in 2006; he'll turn 22 years old when pitchers and catchers officially report on Feb. 13. From an experience standpoint, however, Perry is arguably behind where Zumaya stood in '06. A year ago at this point, Perry was in the bullpen for his junior season at the University of Arizona. Zumaya was not a college product, but he pitched in high school, whereas Perry did not.

In terms of what Perry throws, however, he's a pure power reliever with the fastball that could arguably make the jump.

When general manager Dave Dombrowski described Perry during his question-and-answer session with fans at TigerFest last Saturday, he described him with an enthusiasm that he doesn't normally use in public remarks.

While the Tigers always go into the Draft with the approach of taking the best players available, Dombrowski said, "It was a situation where one quality bullpen arm after another kept staring us in the face. And it started with Ryan Perry.

"When you see Ryan Perry and you see him for the first time in Spring Training, you are going to say, 'Wow.' I guarantee you that. I have seen him throw 100 mph myself. This guy is very close to the arm strength of a Joel Zumaya. He is right there."

Zumaya, of course, became famous for his triple-digit readings on radar guns as a rookie. Eulogio De La Cruz threatened triple digits during his brief call-up in 2007, before he went to Florida after the season in the trade for Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis, but no Tigers youngster has matched it.

"He is continuing to develop," Dombrowski continued about Perry. "He hasn't pitched that long. He is the type of guy that could come [through the system] extremely fast. I have no doubt about that. And when you have that type of ability, your mind is always open."

That openness probably closed a little in the last few weeks, as the Tigers added veteran relievers to camp. Beyond Brandon Lyon, the overwhelming favorite to close games, Detroit has issued Spring Training invitations to former key setup men Juan Rincon and Scott Williamson. The club could yet do the same with left-hander John Parrish.

Then there's Zumaya himself, whose road back from the stress fracture in his shoulder from last fall has been encouraging enough that club officials are considering the possibility he'll be ready around the time the season begins.

"That will change the whole bullpen, probably," Leyland said. "Zumaya's health will be a significant factor in the bullpen. You might also need two guys to replace Zumaya. He could be that good for us."

Add Zumaya or one of the veteran signings to the setup crew alongside Lyon and Rodney, and the Tigers have a relatively experienced late-inning group. That could reduce the need of a hard-throwing youngster like Perry. On the other hand, it could also allow the Tigers the chance to have Perry pitch in lower-pressure situations in the big leagues, though that might not be enough reason to have him skip two Minor League levels and jump to the big leagues.

The most important judgment will come from Leyland in Spring Training, while he tries out Perry, Cody Satterwhite and others in game situations and tries to make a determination how they would react in big league pressure situations. As Leyland put it during last month's Winter Meetings and again last week, retiring Chico Ramirez in the Minors is a lot different than facing Manny Ramirez.

By adding a few veteran relievers, the Tigers have put themselves in a position where if they were to keep Perry, it's because they want to, not because they have to. Still, it doesn't change the position that they can.