The Los Angeles Dodgers’ bullpen has been worrisome through the first few weeks of the 2024 season. Tuesday night’s win against the Washington Nationals was the first time the relief arms shined when they were needed most, however, that hasn’t quieted the rumors tying Los Angeles to the Boston Red Sox.
Throughout the offseason, the Dodgers were reportedly interested in bringing former closer Kenley Jansen back. However, longtime baseball reporter Peter Gammons says L.A. is interested in another Boston reliever.
Brennan Bernardino was one of Boston’s breakout stars last season, when he posted a 3.20 ERA with a 58-to-18 strikeout-to-walk ratio, a .250 batting average against, and a 1.30 WHIP in 50.2 innings.
He was near-perfect through seven spring appearances, only allowing one unearned run on three hits in 6.2 innings, but Boston manager Alex Cora surprisingly optioned him to Triple-A Worcester to begin the this season.
The demotion caught everyone by surprise, including Bernardino. He was thought to be a lock for the Opening Day roster.
“It caught me off guard,” Bernardino said to Chris Cotillo of MassLive. “But I’m here now. I’ve been through a lot of s–t in my career so this is part of it. I’m gonna try whatever I can to get back up there and help the big club. . . I’ve always got a chip on my shoulder I can’t shake off anyways, so it’s just a bigger chip now.”
The left-hander was recalled on April 9 and has made seven appearances, including one start, allowing only one earned run on three hits across 9.2 innings. He has struck out 10 batters and walked five.
The lefty would be a solid addition to a Dodgers ‘pen that only has Alex Vesia, Nick Ramirez, and swingman Ryan Yarbrough from the left side. Brusdar Graterol was also transferred to the 60-day injured list, leaving an open competition for high-leverage setup innings.
Bernardino is a Southern California native out of Valencia and attended Cal State Dominguez Hills. He was selected in the 26th round of the 2014 draft by the Cincinnati Reds and made his big league debut on July 13, 2022. He owns a career record of 2-3 with an ERA of 2.87 across 62.2 innings and 64 games, including seven starts.
