With their starting rotation decimated by injuries that even depleted the initial wave of replacements, the Los Angeles Dodgers were forced to tap further into their depth by calling up Caleb Ferguson earlier this month.
The young left-hander struggled in his MLB debut at PNC Park but has improved in each game since. Ferguson made two more starts but his last two appearances have both come out of the bullpen.
With Kenta Maeda, Rich Hill and Clayton Kershaw all recently coming off the 10-day disabled list, the need for Ferguson was diminished. Though, he did back Kershaw in his first start off the DL.
The game against the New York Mets was one Ferguson was initially scheduled to start, while Kershaw was due to join Triple-A Oklahoma City on a rehab assignment.
With the Dodgers’ rotation essentially back to health, Ferguson will shift to a role in the bullpen, according to Cary Osborne of Dodger Insider:
With rookie Caleb Ferguson pitching two innings and throwing 34 pitches on Thursday, the plan is to keep him in the bullpen for the time being.
Although he’s being shifted out of his typical role, that Ferguson is remaining on the active roster is somewhat of a surprise. Though, the other side of the coin is that he provides Roberts with a long relief option.
Including time in the Minors, the 21-year-old has started 50 of 63 career games since being selected by the Dodgers in the 38th round of the 2014 Draft.
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