Lauer eager for fresh start with Dodgers; slated to join rotation next week

SAN DIEGO -- When Eric Lauer walked into the Dodgers' clubhouse at Petco Park, one of the first of his new teammates to greet him was righty reliever Will Klein.

When Klein became a World Series hero with his four scoreless innings of relief in the marathon 18-inning Game 3 last October, Lauer was opposite him with the Blue Jays, matching him zero for zero across 4 2/3 frames.

"I was like, 'All right, I know you, I remember you,'" Lauer said on Tuesday, when he joined the Dodgers after being acquired from the Blue Jays in exchange for cash considerations over the weekend.

The Dodgers' hitters couldn't solve Lauer during the World Series, but their pitching coaches will take a crack at getting the left-hander back to his form from last season. Lauer could make it into a game as soon as Wednesday night in San Diego, when he might be available out of the bullpen, and he is tentatively scheduled to make his first start next Tuesday against the Rockies at Dodger Stadium.

Last year, Lauer went 9-2 with a 3.18 ERA across 28 appearances (15 starts), but he was designated for assignment by the Blue Jays last week after posting a 6.69 ERA across eight appearances (six starts). His fastball velocity has taken a dip in that span, down 1.3 mph on average.

"We’ve had our guys take a look, and we’ll sit down and talk through some stuff, see how much we can do on the fly, how much of it is not just subconscious," general manager Brandon Gomes said. "We know the makeup is really good, and we’re looking forward to getting our hands on him and helping him be as successful as he’s been in the past."

One of the coaches tasked with helping Lauer get right is a familiar face: pitching coach Mark Prior, who was the Padres' Minor League pitching coordinator when Lauer was coming up through San Diego's organization. After reuniting with Prior on Tuesday, Lauer came away encouraged by how the process might look.

"He was pretty spot-on as far as what I was thinking, what I was feeling and what I'm looking to do. What I think can get me back to where I was and just being the best version of myself," Lauer said. "He's very open to what I think, too, and that's the nice thing. It's conversation. It's not just, 'Hey, do this.' It's not a drill sergeant or anything. It's very based on how I feel and what I want and what I think."

After spending several days in flux following being DFA'd by Toronto, Lauer was glad to land with L.A., where he should get a decent amount of runway as a starter. With Blake Snell (loose bodies in left elbow) and Tyler Glasnow (lower back spasms) both sidelined for the near future, Lauer allows the Dodgers to continue using a six-man rotation, which has kept starters such as Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki on a schedule where they get at least five days' rest in between outings.

Earlier this season, Lauer expressed some displeasure about being used behind an opener while with the Blue Jays. He believes that those comments were blown out of proportion on social media, but he is looking forward to the change of scenery and the clear role he's adopting with the Dodgers.

"It's good to just have that clarity and that understanding of, 'This is what we see out of you, this is where we're going to use you, this is what we need, this is what we want,'" Lauer said. "And when it lines up with what I want and what I feel I can do the best to help the team, I think that's a really good spot to be in."