Newest Dodgers Pitcher Gets Honest About Slow Start to 2026

The Los Angeles Dodgers made their first bullpen personnel change of 2026 on Monday, when Ben Casparius was placed on the 15-day injured list and Kyle Hurt was recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City to take his place.

In one sense, the move was hardly a surprise. The Dodgers have routinely shuffled relievers in and out of their bullpen en route to back-to-back World Series championships. Last year 35 men took the mound in a relief appearance for the Dodgers; in 2024, 32 men did the same.

The Dodgers placed Ben Casparius on the injured list with right shoulder inflammation. Kyle Hurt is up.
— J.P. Hoornstra (@jphoornstra) April 13, 2026

On the other hand, Casparius' shoulder injury is a new development. He allowed two runs in the seventh inning of the Dodgers' loss to the Texas Rangers on Sunday. Hurt's numbers at Triple-A — 4.2 innings pitched across six games, with a 5.79 ERA — didn't exactly make him an obvious candidate for a promotion, either.

Hurt allowed seven hits and five walks with the Oklahoma City Comets. He counted some of his struggles as part of a necessary learning process.

Hurt is entering his first full season since undergoing Tommy John surgery in July 2024. It's also his first full season as a relief pitcher since he was drafted by the Dodgers out of USC in the fifth round of the 2020 MLB Draft.

"I feel like a reliever now," Hurt said to Dodgers On SI.

Still, some situations have been novel. Three of Hurt's last four appearances with the Comets came in the middle of an inning, rather than starting a new clean inning on his own. In each instance, there was a runner on second base.

"I was kind of put into situations I hadn’t been put in before: back end of the game with runners on base, not coming into a clean inning," Hurt said. "That’s one thing that’s still new. I’ve done it in the past, and I’m happy I got to work on those things in Triple-A. I felt out of whack in some of those situations."

Besides his command, Hurt's pitch mix will be worth keeping an eye on in his first stint with the Dodgers in two years.

At Triple-A, opponents hit .455 against his fastball, which was the pitch he threw most often. Hurt got better results against his changeup (.250 opponents' average, 28.2 whiff percentage) and his slider (.000 opponents' average, 43.8 whiff percentage.)

The Dodgers might look to empahsize Hurt's secondary pitches if and when he takes the mound in Los Angeles.

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