Jack Little Recalled, Noah Davis Optioned

The Los Angeles Dodgers optioned Noah Davis and recalled Jack Little from Triple-A Oklahoma City prior to Saturday’s game against the Houston Astros.

Davis returns to the Minors one day after being part of a woeful Dodgers pitching performance. Ben Casparius got through just three innings in his start and allowed six runs.

After Jack Dreyer got the game into the fifth inning, Davis entered with two outs. The Dodgers hoped to get some length out of the right-hander to preserve their bullpen but he only pitched 1.1 innings.

Davis struck out Maurcio Dubón to end the fifth, only to labor in the sixth as he allowed 10 runs. Victor Caratini hit a grand slam and Jose Altuve slugged his second home run of the night to power the Astros’ big inning.

That marked the most runs the Dodgers allowed in a single inning since giving up 11 to the St. Louis Cardinals on April 23, 1999, when Fernando Tatis hit two grand slams off Chan Ho Park.

Davis, who was acquired from the Boston Red Sox in exchange for cash considerations on March 27, has gone 0-1 with a 19.50 ERA and 2.50 WHIP in five appearances spread across four stints with the team.

Davis is 2-0 with one save and a 4.34 ERA in 20 games (two starts) for Oklahoma City.

Little, who made his MLB debut against the San Diego Padres, allowed two runs over two innings in the appearance on June 19. While with the Comets, he’s gone 4-3 with 10 saves, a 3.60 ERA and 1.37 WHIP in 29 games.

It’s plausible Little’s stay will be brief as the Dodgers are likely to recall Emmet Sheen to start Sunday and remain in the rotation moving forward.

Noah Davis out of Minor League options

With Saturday being the fifth time the Dodgers have optioned Davis back to the Minor Leagues this season, they no longer are able to do so without first putting him on waivers.

That could become a factor if the Dodgers find themselves in a position of needing to rely on him at some point as a fresh reliever.