The Los Angeles Dodgers selected the contract of Nate Jones and optioned Luke Raley to Triple-A Oklahoma City prior to Friday’s series opener against the San Francisco Giants. Travis Blankenhorn was designated for assignment to add Jones to the Dodgers’ 40-man roster.
He was recently signed by the team to a Minor League contract and assigned to Oklahoma City. He appeared in three games, allowing four runs on five hits over three innings of work.
Jones went 0-2 with a 3.48 ERA 1.74 WHIP in 12 games for the Atlanta Braves this season prior to being designated for assignment and released. The bulk of his career experience came with the Chicago White Sox (2012-2019) and Jones pitched for the Cincinnati Reds last season.
The right-hander is among the four relief pitchers the Dodgers consider being available for the first game against the Giants. Manager Dave Roberts identified Edwin Uceta, Dennis Santana and Blake Treinen as the others.
Considering the short bullpen, Roberts acknowledged there could be more of a reliance on Trevor Bauer. “Obviously the game score matters, how he’s throwing, how he’s feeling, all that kind of comes into play,” Roberts said.
“But yeah, if you look at who’s available, it’s hard not to think that Trevor — to an extent — is probably the best option.”
Raley returns to OKC
Raley is headed back to Triple-A after a third stint with the Dodgers. He’s 8-for-44 with one double, one home run and two RBI over 23 games with L.A.
Options with Blankenhorn
The Dodgers claimed Blankenhorn off waivers from the Minnesota Twins on May 14. He appeared in one game for the Twins this season (and one last year) before being designated for assignment.
Blankenhorn made just four plate appearances in those two career games for Minnesota, collecting a double. Blankenhorn was selected by the Twins in the third round (80th overall pick) of the 2015 MLB Draft.
The Dodgers now have one week to either trade Blankenhorn if he is claimed off waivers, or send him outright to the Minors.
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