The Los Angeles Dodgers taxed their bullpen during the end of their weekend series, causing a shakeup in the pitching staff before Clayton Kershaw alleviated some of the pressure in the series opener against the Cincinnati Reds.
Mike Bolsinger was traveling with the club's Triple-A team when he learned he'd have to head to Los Angeles to make a spot start Tuesday night against the Reds, who send Daniel Wright to the hill for his major league debut.
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The Dodgers (23-23) used six pitchers in an 11-inning loss to San Diego on Saturday before nine took the mound Sunday to help snap a four-game losing streak with a 9-5, 17-inning victory. The win came at a cost, though, as manager Dave Roberts was forced to use Ross Stripling, the scheduled starter for this contest.
There was some uncertainty over who would get the nod Monday before Bolsinger was recalled earlier in the day. The right-hander was scheduled to start Monday for Oklahoma City before getting the call that he might be needed against the Reds (15-30).
Bolsinger was sent back to Triple-A a day after giving up three runs and seven hits in 4 1/3 innings of an 8-1 loss to the Angels in his season debut Wednesday. Normally a player would have to wait 10 days before being recalled again, but there's an exception if he's replacing an injured player.
The Dodgers placed Chin-Hui Tsao on the disabled list with a strained right triceps in a corresponding move. Roberts said Bolsinger could stick with the Dodgers for another start.
"It's a day-to-day thing, depending on where we're at," Roberts told MLB's official website.
The Dodgers also recalled reliever Luis Avilan, but the bullpen got a much-needed break as Kershaw tossed a two-hitter to beat Cincinnati 1-0. Adrian Gonzalez's check-swing RBI single in the sixth was all Kershaw needed against the light-hitting Reds.
They've been outscored 61-23 while dropping eight in a row and have been shut out in two of their last three. Their two hits were their fewest since the Chicago Cubs' Jake Arrieta pitched a no-hitter against them April 21.
Joey Votto went 0 for 2 and is hitting .108 with 14 strikeouts over his last 11. He was the last Reds player to reach base with only his fifth walk of the season leading off the fourth as Kershaw proceeded to retire the last 17 he faced.
Wright hopes to provide a boost for a Cincinnati pitching staff that has by far the worst ERA in the majors at 5.48. He gets the nod in place of Tim Adleman, who suffered a strained left oblique while pitching against Cleveland on Thursday.
And it's no wonder why manager Bryan Price chose him. The right-hander has a 0.79 ERA in 34 innings, including a 0.72 ERA in four starts, split between Double-A and Triple-A and pitched a shutout without walking a batter in his last outing for Louisville.
Wright will be Cincinnati's 10th different starter this year.
"I was kind of getting settled in Louisville, found a place to live and everything and I was expecting to be there a while," Wright said. "Then this opportunity opened up. Luckily, I'm getting a chance."
