Make that two more Major League Baseball starts for Julio Urias…
The 19-year-old Mexican professional baseball pitcher will now stay with the Los Angeles Dodgers until the All-Star break.
Urias picked up his first MLB victory on Tuesday against the Milwaukee Brewers despite walking six batters. But with limited starting options and Clayton Kershaw‘s uncertain status with lower-back soreness, the Dodgers are in no position to be sending Urias away, even if it means preserving his rising innings total.
“I would say the odds of Julio being in the rotation until the All-Star break are very high,” manager Dave Roberts said.
The Dodgers have already used nine different starting pitchers in 81 games, four of those who were first-time starters. Urias was one of those first-timers, as was Brock Stewart, who started Wednesday.
Even with his six walks Tuesday, Urias continues to show increasing comfort with pitching in the major leagues after a rocky debut May 27 at New York.
In seven starts, the left-hander has a 4.09 ERA in 33 innings, reaching the 100-pitch mark in his last outing. He has 41 strikeouts to 15 walks. Counting his work in the minor leagues, Urias has pitched 74 innings this season. His minor league high is 87 2/3 innings at Rancho Cucamonga in 2014.
If the Dodgers’ rotation stays in order, Urias figures to make starts Sunday at home against the Colorado Rockies and July 8 at home against the San Diego Padres before reaching the break.