The Los Angeles Dodgers on Thursday transferred relief pitcher Chris Hatcher to the 60-day disabled list as part of a move to clear room for Grant Dayton’s call up from Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Hatcher landed on the 15-day DL Wednesday with a strained left oblique. Thursday’s roster move leaves him in danger of potentially missing the remainder of the 2016 season as the earliest Hatcher can be reinstated is Sept. 18.
The Dodgers at that point will only have 14 games remaining on their schedule. Hatcher is 5-4 with a 5.53 ERA, 5.22 FIP, 1.50 WHIP, 21 walks and 43 strikeouts in 40.2 innings pitched over 37 games.
He endured a particularly rough appearance on Tuesday despite entering in the eighth inning with a 7-1 lead. A leadoff walk was followed by a single and two-run triple, and Hatcher was removed without retiring a batter and charged with three runs.
Hatcher’s struggles are reminiscent of the trouble he had last season prior to being placed on the DL, also with an oblique injury, in June. He returned in mid-August and posted a 1.31 ERA with 26 strikeouts in 20.2 innings across 22 games to emerge as a reliable setup man.
Hatcher owns a 4.63 ERA, 4.32 FIP and 1.37 WHIP in 86 games over parts of two seasons with the Dodgers. Aside from a strong finish to 2015, the hard-throwing right-hander has largely struggled to meet expectations.
