Assad allowed a hit and a walk while striking out five over 6.1 scoreless innings of relief in Sunday's 2-1 loss to San Francisco.
With Jameson Taillon (hamstring) exiting with no outs in the second inning, Assad was called upon to eat innings and did so brilliantly. His five strikeouts marked a season high, and the right-hander now owns a 4.73 ERA, 1.08 WHIP and 19:8 K:BB across 32.1 innings over nine appearances (three starts). If Taillon requires a stint on the injured list, Assad is a logical candidate to step into the rotation.