UPDATE (July 24, 5 p.m. PT): The Los Angeles Dodgers designated Ricky Vanasco for assignment in order to make room on their 40-man roster for the signing of Nick Ahmed.
A forthcoming the Los Angeles Dodgers roster crunch saw movement start on Monday with James Paxton getting designated for assignment in order to make room for River Ryan.
While Paxton filled a need for the Dodgers this season, he didn’t factor into their postseason plans and represented a trade chip before the 3 p.m. PT deadline on July 30.
The Dodgers designating Paxton for assignment was the first of what’s expected to be multiple Dodgers roster changes in the coming days and weeks.
According to Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic, the Dodgers now are planning to DFA Ricky Vanasco:
Dodgers are designating reliever Ricky Vanasco for assignment, sources tell The Athletic.
Clears a 40-man roster spot for Clayton Kershaw, who returns off the 60-day IL tomorrow.
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) July 24, 2024
Vanscao likely won’t get officially designated for assignment until Thursday, when Clayton Kershaw is scheduled to come off the 60-day injured list to start against the San Francisco Giants for his 2024 debut.
The right-hander has appeared in just two games for the Dodgers, once in April and more recently in July. Vanasco’s first appearance was two scoreless innings against the Washington Nationals in his MLB debut, but he then allowed three runs to the Detroit Tigers earlier this month.
Vanasco was optioned back to Triple-A Oklahoma City on July 14 as a corresponding move to Brent Honeywell joining the Dodgers roster after he was claimed off waivers.
In 24 games for OKC, Vanasco is 0-2 with five saves, a 3.47 ERA and 1.71 WHIP.
Rick Vansaco bio
Vanasco was selected by the Texas Rangers in the 15th round of the 2017 MLB Draft. He originally joined the Dodgers organization in June 2023, when L.A. traded Luis Valdez to Texas.
Soon after, Vanasco was designated for assignment as one of two corresponding moves to Daniel Hudson coming off the 60-day injured list. Vanasco cleared waivers and was sent outright to Oklahoma City, where he remained for the rest of the 2023 season.
Vanasco elected Minor League free agency after the season but re-signed with the Dodgers on a Major League contract, which added him to their 40-man roster.
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