Gonsolin sent to triple A with a strong rating
Tony Gonsolin dazzled over six scoreless innings in his Dodger Stadium debut Monday. On Tuesday, he was a minor leaguer again.
The Dodgers optioned the right-hander to triple-A Oklahoma City on Tuesday as part of a cluster of roster moves. It was not unexpected. Gonsolin took Hyun-Jin Ryu’s spot in the rotation, Ryu’s return from the injured list was impending and the Dodgers want Gonsolin to continue starting every five days.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts confirmed that Ryu, out since Friday because of a sore neck, will start Sunday against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Ryu has posted a league-leading 1.53 ERA — nearly a run better than anyone else — in 1352⁄3 innings, his heaviest workload since 2014.
In the meantime, lefthander Caleb Ferguson was recalled from Oklahoma City to give the Dodgers an extra reliever.
Roberts said Gonsolin will return to Oklahoma City as a starting pitcher and is slated to make his next start Monday. But he acknowledged Gonsolin remains an option to pitch out of the bullpen for the Dodgers in October.
“I could see him in both roles,” Roberts said. “The rubber’s going to meet the road here in about less than a couple weeks. We got to figure out which direction we go with all these guys. But right now you still want to keep guys built up just to guard against a potential injury from somebody.”
Gonsolin, 25, was almost exclusively a reliever as a professional until last season. It is experience the Dodgers could tap into to bolster their bullpen in the postseason.
But Gonsolin’s stock soared when his role shifted. He put his potential on display Monday, limiting the St. Louis Cardinals to two hits and a walk across six innings in his third major league appearance.
It was Gonsolin’s best outing at any level this season, which has been hindered by injuries. His six innings and 90 pitches were season highs. He owns a 4.95 ERA across 361⁄3 innings in 12 starts for Oklahoma City.
He returns to the minors, perhaps for only a brief period, firmly on the Dodgers’ radar.
“With Tony, everything’s in play,” Roberts said. “I think part of it is it’s been such an abbreviated year for him because of his injuries and so, not to say it’s a lost year, but you want to make it as productive a season for him as possible, as far as innings pitched.”
Verdugo goes on injured list
The Dodgers placed outfielder Alex Verdugo on the 10-day injured list with a strained right oblique as their list of injuries continues to pile up. Corner infielder and outfielder Edwin Rios was recalled from Oklahoma City.
Verdugo sustained the injury attempting to avoid a ground ball on the basepaths Sunday in the Dodgers’ win over the Padres. Roberts indicated the rookie probably would miss at least two weeks.
Verdugo, 23, is batting .294 with 12 home runs and an .817 on-base-plus-slugging percentage while providing plus defense in the outfield. He joins Chris Taylor, Enrique Hernandez, David Freese, Ross Stripling and Rich Hill on the injured list.
“It’s more, you got to let it heal up and give it time for it to heal and then resume activities,” Roberts said. “So that’s the tough part when you’re talking about rotation, whether it be throwing or swinging a bat. So with Alex, we’ve got to take our time and make sure we get this behind us.”
Without Verdugo, who had settled into left field since center fielder A.J. Pollock’s return last month, the Dodgers will turn to a combination of Matt Beaty, Joc Pederson and Rios in left field.
The Dodgers are also closely managing Pollock since he suffered a groin injury last week. He was not in the lineup Tuesday for the fourth time in five games.
Stripling suffers a setback
Stripling was scheduled to go out on a rehab assignment Tuesday, but the plans were scratched because his neck trouble resurfaced.
Stripling is officially on the 10-day injured list with right biceps tendinitis since July 25, but he initially dealt with neck soreness. The neck problem forced him to exit his start — on July 24 — after five innings.
Barnes hitting
The Dodgers sent Austin Barnes to triple A on July 25 after a months-long slump, hoping he could solve his problems at the plate. His last four games for Oklahoma City are encouraging. The catcher is eight for 18 with a home run in each game.
He hit five home runs in 70 games for the Dodgers.