Ricky Vanasco opted out, Brent Honeywell added

The Los Angeles Dodgers added Brent Honeywell to their roster and optioned Ricky Vanasco to Triple-A Oklahoma City ahead of Sunday’s series finale against the Detroit Tigers.

Yesterday, the Dodgers transferred Yoshinobu Yamamoto to the 60-day injured list to make room on the 40-man roster for Honeywell.

Vanasco made his second appearance of the season last night, starting the ninth inning that ended up seeing the Tigers score five runs to tie the game. The right-hander allowed two singles and a double, being credited with three runs without recording an out.

His last appearance with the Dodgers came on April 15 in his MLB debut when he pitched two scoreless innings against the Washington Nationals, going one without allowing a hit.

Although he only made two appearances, Vanasco was in his third stint with the Dodgers this year.

He fared better with Oklahoma City, posting a 3.63 ERA in 22.1 innings with 25 strikeouts, but struggled with his command, striking out 20 batters to give him a 1.75 WHIP.

Has Brent Honeywell boosted the Dodgers bullpen?

The Dodgers claimed Honeywell off waivers after he was designated for assignment by the Pittsburgh Pirates. The former top prospect has ties to Andrew Friedman, as the Tampa Bay Rays selected Honeywell in the second round of the 2014 MLB Draft.

That was months before Friedman was hired to run the Dodgers front office.

Honeywell spent less than a week with the Pirates this season and appeared in just two games. He threw a scoreless inning in his 2024 debut and allowed one run over 2.1 innings on July 10.

The 29-year-old is a career 2-4 with a 4.95 ERA and 1.48 WHIP in 45 games (two starts) over parts of three seasons at the major league level. The right-hander has pitched for the Rays, San Diego Padres, Chicago White Sox and Pirates.

Overall, in his Minor League career, Honeywell is 37-30 with nine saves and a 3.43 ERA in 158 games (97 starts).

Honeywell is a fresh arm for a Dodgers bullpen that has endured a heavy workload over the last two and a half weeks.

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