Dodgers call up Edgardo Henriquez, who started season in Low-A Rancho Cucamonga
Henriquez routinely hits triple digits with his fastball and pitched at all four minor league levels this season. Ben Casparius optioned. Gavin Stone’s season ends on 60-day IL
LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers called up hard-throwing right-hander Edgardo Henriquez ahead of their series against the Padres, adding a wrinkle not only for the National League West but potentially the postseason as well.
“Very excited, he’s a really great kid, with a big arm,” manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday. “He’s certainly a weapon. He’s secret in the sense that I don’t think anyone knows him outside of our organization, as far as the major leagues. But it’s going to be exciting to watch him make his debut.”
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To make room on the 40-man roster for Henriquez, Gavin Stone was transferred to the 60-day injured list, officially ending his season. Stone last started on August 31, has been sidelined since September 6 with shoulder inflammation, and still hadn’t thrown since. This was an expected move with Roberts saying last week during the road trip that it was unlikely Stone would return this season.
Henriquez had Tommy John surgery in 2022 and missed all of 2023. He switched from starting to relief this season, and worked his way up from Low-A Rancho Cucamonga. He pitched at all four Dodgers affiliates, posting a combined 2.72 ERA with 88 strikeouts (a 38.9-percent strikeouts rate) and 29 walks in 53 innings.
That included a 2.84 ERA in 14 games for Triple-A Oklahoma City, with 18 strikeouts and 10 walks in his 12⅔ innings. He averaged 100 mph on his four-seam fastball in his last appearance, last Wednesday in Salt Lake City.
Henriquez is eligible for the postseason by virtue of being in the organization by August 31. That he wasn’t on the 40-man roster by then means an extra step would be needed put him on the postseason roster. He’d have to replace someone on the 60-day injured list — Orion Kerkering did this with the Phillies last year after debuting in September, as one example — and the Dodgers have almost too many 60-day IL players to count, a group that now includes Stone.
But Roberts wasn’t ready to put the cart in front of the horse just yet regarding Henriquez in October.
“It’s a variance play to get him in here, get him in the big leagues, see how he responds, and go from there,” Roberts said. “I think there’s a lot of guys under consideration, and we’ll see if we can get him into a game and see how he looks. But certainly the arm talent, you can’t debate that.”
When Henriquez gets into a game, he’ll be the 40th pitcher used by the Dodgers this season, breaking the franchise record set in 2021 and matched in 2023. The only teams in the majors this season to use more pitchers than the Dodgers are the Angels with pitchers, and the Marlins with 45 pitchers, a major league record.
Henriquez will wear uniform number 60 with the Dodgers.
To make room on the active roster, right-hander Ben Casparius was optioned. After joining the team on Wednesday in Miami, Casparius pitched once in his five games active, allowing a run in three innings with five strikeouts to keep the Dodgers close on Sunday against the Rockies, a game that was won by back-to-back home runs by Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts in the ninth.
“Outside of Shohei, Ben Casparius was the MVP of today’s game,” Roberts said Sunday. “I can’t say enough about Ben, and working through it. Mark [Prior, pitching coach] had a mound visit with him, and at that point and time it seemd like it settled him in a little bit. Then he went on and was fantastic.”
Casparius has pitched twice in two stints in his first season in the majors, having also won his major league debut with a scoreless inning on August 31 against the Diamondbacks in Arizona.
