The Los Angeles Dodgers recalled Caleb Ferguson and optioned Casey Sadler to Triple-A Oklahoma City prior to Thursday’s series finale against the Philadelphia Phillies.
Ferguson’s arrival gives the Dodgers a second left-hander in the bullpen and an overall fresh arm. The club used five relief pitchers, including Sadler, in Wednesday night’s game that took over six hours to complete when factoring in the rain delay.
Ferguson began the 2019 season on the Dodgers’ Opening Day roster for the first time in his career and pitched well out of the gate. He strung together 6.1 scoreless innings through his first seven appearances before encountering some trouble.
On April 27, Ferguson failed to retire any of the three batters faced and was removed with the bases loaded. The Dodgers placed him on the 10-day injured list the following day due to an oblique issue.
Ferguson rejoined the Dodgers after completing a rehab assignment, but struggled with his secondary pitches. He was optioned to Oklahoma City near the end of May and recalled two weeks later, only for fastball command to be an issue.
Ferguson has appeared in 22 games (one start) thus far for the Dodgers, going 0-1 with a 5.48 ERA, 6.39 FIP and 1.74 WHIP. The 23-year-old has been dominant for Oklahoma City this season, which continued after being optioned June 27.
In his last five games (one start) with the affiliate, Ferguson had one save and nine strikeouts over 6.1 scoreless innings while holding opponents to a .143/.250/.143 battling line.
Sadler returns to Oklahoma City after appearing in two games for the Dodgers. His debut with the team came in the series opener against the Phillies.
Sadler allowed one run on two hits over a combined 2.2 innings pitched. He took over for Kenta Maeda after the rain delay and retired two of three batters faced.
The Dodgers acquired Sadler in a trade that sent Nathan Witt to the Tampa Bay Rays.
