The Los Angeles Dodgers announced a major bullpen shuffle ahead of Saturday's game against the Boston Red Sox.
Right-hander Will Klein was placed on the injured list with right elbow discomfort while left-hander Cole Irvin was designated for assignment.
Right-handed pitchers Kyle Hurt and Wyatt Mills have taken their spots on the active roster.
Hurt, 28, has had a trying 2026 season in his return from Tommy John surgery.
The right-hander has made 33 appearances at the big league level, accruing a 4.59 ERA with 39 strikeouts to 18 walks over 33.1 innings.
In nine outings at Triple-A, he has an 11.57 ERA with 12 strikeouts to 10 walks over seven innings of work.
As for Mills, he joined the Dodgers on a minor league contract last August . He opened the 2026 season in Triple-A but was called up for four games in May and again for one game in June.
Overall, Mills has a 6.23 ERA across 4.1 big league innings this season with more walks (seven) than strikeouts (four). At Triple-A OKC, he has a 2.41 ERA across 37.1 innings with 52 strikeouts to 18 walks.
As for Klein, he's struggled mightily as of late after a dominant start to the season, and will now get a couple weeks to rest.
Overall, he has a 3.67 ERA across 41.2 innings. In July, he had a 7.71 ERA across eight appearances (9.1 innings).
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Friday night that the team was trying to figure out what's resulted in his sudden struggles.
"We're still trying to dig into it," Roberts said after Friday's game in which Klein allowed three runs (one earned) on three hits over 1.1 innings. "I thought there were some good fastball throws in there tonight, but the secondary stuff, that's kind of what's getting him. The sweeper is not a strike; is not getting chase from it. The curveball has a different shape to it than it did last year. So I don't know if it's an arm thing, a mechanics thing, but that's something we're trying to dig in on."
As for Irvin, the 32-year-old was added to the roster on Friday and made his first MLB appearance since 2024.
Irvin was used as an innings-eater in the bullpen game, allowing six runs over six innings. Five of the runs came in the top of the seventh inning, where he was left out to absorb innings in what became a punt game for LA.
"He did what he could," Roberts said of Irvin. "You have to sometimes take it on the chin to then give yourself a chance to win the series. That's kind of what you have to do. Never feels good when you're in it. But that's what you have to do. And then, catching a lead I thought was great. But yeah, I mean, I think that five-run inning kind of did us in right there."
Irvin, an Orange County native, was grateful for the opportunity.
"Part of the job. I signed up to be a Major League Baseball player, and some nights aren't going to go your way. And you just got to be able to take it on the lip and keep going," Irvin said. "I can sit here and smile because all the work that I put into my season so far got me this opportunity, and I'm not going to let anything get in the way of the joy that I have right now. And yeah, it sucks to lose, but at the same time, I earned this opportunity."
Irvin is a seven-year journeyman who's spent time with the Philadelphia Phillies , then-Oakland Athletics, Baltimore Orioles , Minnesota Twins and now Dodgers at the MLB level.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/mlb/dodgers/onsi as Dodgers Cut Ties With 7-Year Pitcher, Lose Will Klein to IL in Massive Roster Move .
