Dodgers Recall Zach Lee As 26th Man In Partial Doubleheader

The Los Angeles Dodgers had an interesting Friday night, having their game delayed two times due to malfunctioning lights and then finally suspended after five complete innings.

Before their Saturday matchup with the Washington Nationals, the Dodgers and Nationals had to finish the final four innings of their game. The Dodgers started down 3-2 before Adrian Gonzalez tied the game with a home run in the sixth. An eight inning home run allowed by Pedro Baez made it 5-3 and the NL West leaders fell by that score.

Upon learning about the suspended game, Major League Baseball allowed the two teams to call up a 26th man for the originally scheduled Saturday game. It was expected that both teams would call up a pitcher; however, the Dodgers decision is a bit odd.

The Dodgers announced that they will recall right-hander Zach Lee to be that 26th man on Saturday. Lee is a starting pitcher and the team has ace Clayton Kershaw penciled in for the start. The 23-year-old Lee will presumably be the long man out of the bullpen in case Kershaw runs into any trouble.

Lee was drafted in the first round of the 2010 draft and has yet to make his MLB debut. He began the year in Triple-A before experiencing a tingling feeling in his fingers. He was shut down for a few weeks and made a few rehab starts prior to returning to Triple-A.

It will be interesting to see what the plan and thinking was behind the move, unless the Dodgers have greater plans for their pitching prospect.