And just like that, the Dodgers' bullpen is a major problem after historic run

Less than a month after making history, the Los Angeles Dodgers bullpen has become a big problem. On May 24, the Dodgers extended their bullpen scoreless streak to 38 innings, something no team in franchise history had achieved. The Dodgers have been around for a long time, mind you — 137 years, to be exact. On May 25, that same 'pen came crashing back down to earth.

Per FanGraphs, the Dodgers bullpen has 11 meltdowns since May 25, which is the third-most in baseball during that span. For those unfamiliar, a meltdown is when a reliever’s WPA (win probability added) is less than or equal to -0.06 in any individual game.

That bad execution continued on Wednesday night, when the Dodgers gave up two home runs to a relative unknown in Pittsburgh Pirates backup outfielder Tyler Callihan, the second of which gave the Bucs a late lead they wouldn't relinquish.

Dodgers bullpen frustration reaches a boiling point in loss to Pirates

While Shohei Ohtani gave up a season high in runs to Callihan and the Pirates, he left the game with the lead. The Dodgers bullpen had every opportunity to close the door, but Alex Vesia, Kyle Hurt and Jack Dreyer failed to do so. Hurt in particular gave up four earned runs, including Callihan's second homer.

“I yanked a 3-2 pitch and there was nothing I could do after that,” Hurt said. “He’s a hot hitter and he didn’t miss it.”

Dodgers fans were quick to blame Dave Roberts for the loss. He could've let Ohtani pitch a seventh inning. He could've pulled the rug out from under Vesia, Hurt and Dreyer if they clearly didn't have it in favor of a shutdown arm. The list goes on and on, but is only a symptom of the greater problem — the Dodgers will, like most teams around the trade deadline, need another arm.

“This one stings, because I felt we were playing good baseball,” Roberts said. “We had no business losing that game. I can’t recall all the losses we’ve had. I know there’s some other ones that have really stung a bit, but recently, [this] certainly doesn’t feel good.”

How can the Dodgers fix their bullpen dilemma?

The good news for LA is that they should get reinforcements soon. River Ryan, Gavin Stone and Bobby Miller are all on the road to recovery. The Dodgers could also get Blake Snell and/or Tyler Glasnow back in the weeks or months to come, which would force Eric Lauer or another starting pitcher to the bullpen.

Eventually, however, Andrew Friedman is going to have to look in the mirror. No, the Dodgers don't have to make a big trade deadline splash if they don't want to, but adding some help in relief would go a long way towards their three-peat chances. For example, the Dodgers only have two left-handed relievers to choose from in Vesia and Dreyer. On Wednesday night, Roberts saw just how wrong that can go.

The Dodgers bullpen had a historic run. It sounds simplistic, but everything regresses to the mean over the course of a 162-game season, even for a team as good as the Dodgers. For now, it's a major problem Friedman and Roberts need to fix.

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