Dodgers activate Andrew Heaney off injured list to rejoin starting rotation

The Dodgers activated left-hander Andrew Heaney from the injured list to start Wednesday afternoon’s series finale against the Nationals, after his second extended stint on the injured list with shoulder inflammation this season.

Heaney this time around missed 28 games while sidelined, after missing 53 games earlier this season from April to June. To prepare for his latest return, Heaney made one rehab start for Low-A Rancho Cucamonga, then another in the Arizona Complex League. In the latter last Thursday, Heaney struck out eight in five innings and allowed a pair of solo home runs.

So far this season, Heaney has made more minor league rehab starts (five) than major league starts (three), but when he’s been on the mound for the Dodgers he has been quite good. The left-hander allowed three runs, only one of them earned, in 15⅓ innings, with 23 strikeouts against only four walks.

His last major league start was June 19.

Heaney signed a one-year, $8.5 million contract with the Dodgers in November. The deal included up to $1 million in incentives, but with the first bonus ($250,000) coming at 100 innings, his two long stints on the injured list all but ended his chances at that.

In perhaps the most-telegraphed corresponding roster move of the season, Garrett Cleavinger was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City after throwing 36 pitches to record five outs, allowing six runs while standing in the line of fire for a bullpen that had half of its eight members unavailable.

Mitch White was also optioned, almost certainly related to that aforementioned bullpen usage, because after going six innings on Tuesday he wouldn’t be available for the next few days, essentially leaving the Dodgers with a seven-pitcher bullpen instead of eight.

Jake Reed gets the call up from Oklahoma City, where he pitched two scoreless innings over two games, with three strikeouts. The Dodgers claimed Reed off waivers from the Mets on July 13.