The Oakland A’s recalled reliever Ryan Dull on Thursday, the team announced. To make room, starter Daniel Mengden was optioned back to Triple-A Las Vegas.
Through five games in the majors this year, including three starts and two bulk-relief outings following an opener, Mengden has struggled to find his command. He’s walked 15 batters in 23 innings, and even in games where he limits the scoring he has still needed to navigate around constant trouble on the bases.
Mengden, 2019: 5.09 ERA, 23 ip, 19 Ks, 15 BB, 1 HR, 4.03 FIP
The right-hander posted one excellent outing, featuring seven innings and just one run against the lowly Tigers, but otherwise he’s racked up inefficient pitch counts that have limited how deep he can work into games.