Dodgers re-sign released bullpen option as possible stretch run reinforcement

Even if the Los Angeles Dodgers have already clinched a postseason berth this year, their bullpen has been a problem area all year and still stands out as a potential postseason pitfall despite the fact we’re just a week away from the end of the regular season. 

And there’s no denying that Matt Sauer has been a part of those struggles, as he posted a 6.37 ERA in 29 2/3 innings with the Dodgers this year before being designated for assignment at the beginning of September. 

But his chapter with the Dodgers may not be done just yet, as he re-signed with the team last week on a minor league deal that could lead to him making his return to the Dodgers’ major league roster at some point before the end of the season. 

Matt Sauer could be a bullpen reinforcement for the Dodgers this season 

Sauer signed a minor league contract with the Dodgers in the offseason and has been shuttling between the team’s major league roster and Triple-A Oklahoma City for most of the season. He made 10 appearances with the Dodgers this season before being DFA'd and almost exclusively worked in long relief in games that had already been decided.

While he won’t work in any big games, he stands out as a key depth option as the Dodgers begin to plan for the postseason. Although the Dodgers still hold a lead over the Padres in the National League West, it’s looking more and more likely like they’re going to have to play in the Wild Card Round for the first time since 2021. 

That’s a key development for a couple of reasons. First off, there’s the fear that comes with playing in the best-of-three Wild Card round. Even if the Dodgers will be better than the team they’d be playing (it would be the Reds if the season ended today), anything can happen in a three-game series. 

Secondly, it means the Dodgers will only have one off-day before the start of the postseason as opposed to being able to sit out the Wild Card round and get some much-needed rest. 

But now the Dodgers will have a quick turnaround that could wreak havoc on their already hampered pitching staff. Even if the Dodgers clinch their seed early in the week, they’ll still need to fill some innings across the final weekend of the series, which is where Sauer could come in. 

While he’s only worked in long relief with the Dodgers, he was logging reps as a starter in Triple-A prior to being called up, so he’d likely be first in line to get a spot start in a meaningless game. 

The Dodgers will go with Shohei Ohtani (Tuesday), Blake Snell (Wednesday) and Yoshinobu Yamamoto (Thursday) in their upcoming three-game series against Arizona, which would put all three in line to start in next week’s Wild Card Series.

They haven’t announced their starters for this weekend’s three-game series against the Mariners, though it would be Clayton Kershaw, Emmett Sheehan and Tyler Glasnow’s turns through the rotation so long as they elect to follow the same schedule they had last week.

If the Dodgers’ postseason fate is set going into the weekend, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them pull Kershaw and/or Glasnow out of their starts and elect to go with an innings eater like Sauer.

It’s not a perfect situation, but luckily the Dodgers have enough pitching depth to make it work thanks to players like Sauer.