Even though fans won’t see a flurry of roster additions compared to previous seasons, the Dodgers still made several moves on the first day teams were permitted to add two additional players.
To fill out their roster, the team added starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw an infielder Miguel Vargas.
Kershaw gets the start in series finale against the Mets in New York on Thursday afternoon.
In a separate move, the club also recalled righty reliever Phil Bickford after placing Brusdar Graterol on the injured list with right elbow inflammation.
Kershaw returns from the injured list after being placed on the shelf on August 5 with low back pain. The nine-time All-Star is 10-0 with a 2.19 ERA (24 ER/98.2 IP) and 108 strikeouts in his career against the Mets. This season, he is 7-3 with a 2.64 ERA (25 ER/85.1 IP) and 88 strikeouts in 15 starts. In his Hall of Fame career, he is a combined 192-87 with a 2.49 ERA (704 ER/2540.0 IP) and 2,758 strikeouts in 394 career games.
The 22-year-old Vargas returns for his second stint with the club after having his contract selected on August 2. He went 2-for-8 with two RBI in two games for the Dodgers. With Triple-A Oklahoma City, he is hitting .304 with 32 doubles, 17 homers and 82 RBI in 113 games.
The Cuban native has been with the Dodgers five minor league seasons, and he has hit a combined .313 (504-for-1612) with 49 homers and 265 RBI in 410 career minor league games. The Dodgers’ Branch Rickey Minor League Player of the Year in 2021, slashed .319/.380/.526 with 23 homers and 76 RBI in 120 games between High-A Great Lakes and Double-A Tulsa in 2021. He was originally signed by the Dodgers as an international free agent on September 7, 2017.
Bickford, 27, returns for his fourth stint with the team and he is 2-1 with a 5.14 ERA (28 ER/49.0 IP) in 51 games for the Dodgers this season. He has been in the Majors parts of three seasons with Milwaukee (2020-2021) and Los Angeles (2021-2022) and he is a combined 6-3 with a 4.26 ERA (48 ER/101.1 IP) and 110 strikeouts against 32 walks in 109 games.
Graterol, 24, returns to the injured list for the second time this season and made four appearances (4.1 IP/0 ER) since returning from the IL last Monday against Milwaukee. The Venezuelan right-hander has appeared in 41 games for the Dodgers, and he is 2-3 with a 3.02 ERA (15 ER/44.2 IP) and 39 strikeouts. In parts of four seasons with the Dodgers, he is a combined 7-6 with a 3.65 ERA (45 ER/111.0 IP) and 89 strikeouts.
Graterol was originally signed as an international free agent out of Calabozo, Venezuela on August 29, 2014 by the Minnesota Twins.