Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Matt Sauer is in Philadelphia with the team.

Sauer’s arrival from Triple-A Oklahoma City to provide reinforcements to the bullpen in case Roki Sasaki had another short outing. However, the rookie right-hander went four-plus innings and did not overtax the bullpen Saturday.

The Dodgers do not plan to activate Sauer.

The right-hander was a non-roster invitee in spring camp, but was notified by manager Dave Roberts in his final Cactus League start that he would be joining the Dodgers on their trip to Japan.

“I’m a little upset. I’m competing. Just had a pretty bad inning. And then Doc walks out there, and he gets to the mound and smiles,” Sauer said. “So I’m a little confused at first.

“Then he grabbed me around the waist and broke the news. Then I had a big smile on my face. But I was also trying to be, like, pissed. I just had a terrible inning.”

This spring, the right-hander produced an 8.22 ERA across 7.2 innings pitched. He threw eight strikeouts.

Sauer was selected by the New York Yankees in the second round of the 2017 draft and progressed through the minor leagues before making his MLB debut last season after being acquired by the Kansas City Royals in the Rule 5 draft.

In 2024, Sauer posted a 7.71 ERA across 14 games with the Royals.

“One of the reasons I signed here was because of the staff and the development they could do with guys,” Sauer said. “I thought they could really just bring my career on the uprise.”

And now, Sauer will have a chance to make an impact with the defending champions in the big leagues pending an opening on the active roster.