Following their 9-3 win on Friday, the Los Angeles Dodgers welcome the return of Julio Urías in the middle game against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium.
Justin Bruihl was optioned as the corresponding move to the Dodgers activating Urías off the 15-day injured list.
Riding a solid 7-3 stretch in their past 10 games, the Dodgers have moved into second place in the National League West. After starting their road trip by taking two of three from the Colorado Rockies, the Dodgers now have a chance to secure another series victory.
Julio Urías gets the ball for his first start since May 18, after a left hamstring strain kept the veteran sidelined for six weeks. The initial plan was for Urías return in early June, but he and the Dodgers erred on the side of caution due to some lingering soreness.
The 26-year-old disappointed in his first chunk of starts prior to injury, owning a 5-4 record with a 4.39 ERA, 5.32 FIP and 1.16 WHIP across 10 starts. Urías’ last start came against the St. Louis Cardinals, when he allowed four homers in three innings.
The left-hander is built up for around five innings of work, after tossing 60 pitches over four innings in his rehab start for Single-A Rancho Cucamonga last Sunday.
He squares off against left-hander Daniel Lynch, who makes his seventh start of the season. The 26-year-old was very effective in his latest outing, allowing just one run on six hits in a 3-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays.
In 13 innings over his last two starts, Lynch allowed just one run. Lynch relies primarily on a five-pitch mix, with a four-seam fastball, change up and the slider as his go-to options.
Lynch isn’t overwhelming, and most of his arsenal is geared towards inducing contact outs, getting chases outside the strike zone, and missing barrels.
He’ll have a difficult time against a Dodgers lineup that has been the fifth-best offense against fastballs this season. Lynch’s next option is his changeup, which the Dodgers have crushed as well, grading out as the best unit in MLB when seeing them.
Dodgers lineup
RF: Mookie Betts
1B: Freddie Freeman
C: Will Smith
DH: J.D. Martinez
2B: Miguel Vargas
SS: Miguel Rojas
LF: Jonny DeLuca
CF: James Outman
3B: Yonny Hernández
Royals lineup
3B: Maikel Garcia
SS: Bobby Witt Jr.
C: Salvador Perez
1B: Nick Pratto
DH: Edward Olivares
2B: Matt Duffy
LF: Samad Taylor
CF: Drew Waters
RF: Dairon Blanco
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