The depth throughout the Los Angeles Dodgers organization added another layer Monday night when Edward Paredes was called up from Triple-A Oklahoma City. Unlike Joc Pederson, Corey Seager, Julio Urias and Cody Bellinger, Paredes didn’t represent the arrival of a top prospect.
The left-hander spent nine seasons in the Minors and 12 overall as a professional. “It was quite a surprise, I really didn’t expect it,” Paredes said through a translator of having his contract purchased by the Dodgers. “I didn’t believe it. I asked them, ‘Are you sure?'”
Paredes was called upon in the eighth inning, tasked with keeping the Minnesota Twins’ lead at just one run. He received defensive help from Cody Bellinger and Justin Turner en route to throwing a perfect inning.
Bellinger then slugged a go-ahead, three-run home run in the bottom of the eighth to put Paredes in position to earn his first career win. “I was nervous,” Paredes said. “I know Jansen is a great closer, but there was still an inning to go. I was just nervous.”
Kenley Jansen worked around a one-out walk to convert his 25th save of the season. With that, came a sense of relief and satisfaction for the 30-year-old Rivero. “First of all I want to thank God. It’s been 11 long years to get to this point,” he said.
“I want to thank my family, my wife. I’m glad I have the opportunity to show the world what I can do. I’m proud of myself. Sometimes you put obstacles in front of you and the best you can do you can do what you set out to do.”
