The Dodgers lost Roki Sasaki to a blister on his right middle finger in the fourth inning on Wednesday night. On Thursday, Sasaki was placed on the 15-day injured list in favor of another reliever, with Seth Halvorsen recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City.
“It was a pretty good blister, it came out of nowhere. It’s gonna be an IL,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters on Wednesday. “There’s just no way we can avoid it, given the severity of the blister, so we’ll give him some time. But we can cover [the blister] up actually, to keep his arm moving.
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The first day Sasaki is eligible to return from the injured list is September 11. In the interim, left-hander Eric Lauer will return to the starting rotation, Roberts said, likely once the Dodgers return home next week.
Halvorsen gives the Dodgers an extra reliever for the time being, in his second sting with Los Angeles this season. He pitched a scoreless inning on August 11, earning the win against the Kansas City Royals, before getting optioned the next day in a fresh-arm swap.
Since getting acquired by trade from the Colorado Rockies on July 20, Halvorsen has excelled in Triple-A Oklahoma City, allowing only one unearned run in 10 appearances, with 13 strikeouts (34.2 percent strikeout rate) and three unintentional walks in 9 2/3 innings, with five saves.
Halvorsen is the 30th of 30 pitchers used by the Dodgers this season.
