"I've been there before," Boyd said during TigerFest. "I know what to do now."
That has proven to be a theme of Boyd's pro career.
While Daniel Norris was the top prospect acquired from Toronto in the David Price trade, Boyd meant more than depth. Detroit bought on the upswing, having watched him surge from middling Double-A starter to Eastern League sensation to midseason fill-in for the Blue Jays.
Boyd took the lessons from his rough second half at Double-A New Hampshire in 2014 (1-4, 6.96 ERA in 10 starts) and excelled there to begin '15 (6-1, 1.