LOS ANGELES -- It was the most un-newsworthy Los Angeles Dodgers transaction of the offseason, yet it has turned out to be one of the most significant. When the revamped front office started to redo its inherited roster over the fall and winter, one of the first moves was the purchase of little-known right-hander Mike Bolsinger from the Arizona Diamondbacks, after the D-backs designated him for assignment in November. The Dodgers figured that if he pitched well enough to stick at Triple-A Oklahoma City this year, he could provide pitching depth there.

Andrew Friedman & Co. did not figure on calling up the 27-year-old before the first month of the season was complete, but because injuries to Hyun-Jin Ryu and Brandon McCarthy left the rotation without all its bullets, the team has twice made the call for Bolsinger. He has not disappointed.

Bolsinger made his fourth start of the year Saturday night at Dodger Stadium, and he pitched eight shutout innings in a 2-0 win over the San Diego Padres. He faced the minimum 24 hitters through eight innings for an eight-strikeout one-hitter in what was easily the best outing of his major league career. Kenley Jansen pitched a perfect ninth inning for his third save and the team’s first time facing the minimum 27 batters since April 26, 2002, when Odalis Perez threw a one-hitter against the Chicago Cubs.

“Sure, shutouts,” manager Don Mattingly said with a laugh when asked what he expected of Bolsinger when he was called up. “I think you expect him to keep you in the game. We knew he had an array of pitches. We knew he could really spin it.”

Bolsinger was first called up April 23, when he allowed one run over 5 2/3 innings on the road against the San Francisco Giants. Bolsinger was sent back to Triple-A after that start, but the Dodgers recalled him May 12, and he produced a nearly identical line against the Miami Marlins. Then, on Sunday, he pitched six shutout innings against the San Diego Padres.

This is not completely surprising for the Dodgers, given that Bolsinger had allowed only three runs through four starts at Oklahoma City. Still, this is a long way from the 1-6 record and 5.50 ERA he produced for the Diamondbacks in 52 1/3 innings the past season.

“Something just clicked in my head,” Bolsinger said of his 2015 success. “People ask me how I feel, and it’s just that I’m locked in.”

Bolsinger was later asked if he expected to produce this kind of dominance at the major league level when the Dodgers acquired him over the fall.

“No. I’ll be honest,” Bolsinger said with a laugh. “I told myself just to pitch well, and good things were going to happen. Maybe I’d get the opportunity to come up here, and when they give you that opportunity, go out there and do what you can do and pitch well.”

The curveball has allowed for that. Bolsinger came into Saturday’s game throwing it about 47 percent of the time, and he upped the usage against the Padres by spinning it 52 times out of 92 pitches, according to BrooksBaseball.net. He induced 20 swings and got 10 whiffs with his curveball.

“He just does a really nice job of keeping it around the strike zone,” catcher A.J. Ellis said. “It’s a pitch to tease you, and just when you think one is going to be a strike, it breaks out of the zone, and just when you think it’s going to be a ball, it drops in the strike zone. … No matter what level you’re at, if you get hitters in between speeds, it’s going to be a tough day.”

Friedman said after McCarthy’s elbow injury that the Dodgers would rely on in-house options for the near future, while the front office took its time in assessing trade options. There are plenty of those, with Scott Kazmir, Johnny Cueto and even former Dodger Aaron Harang all performing well and expected to be on the trading block sometime soon -- if they aren’t already.

If Bolsinger continues to pitch as he has, though, it could give Friedman the luxury of waiting out the market. Not only is Bolsinger helping the Dodgers win games at this point, but he is also keeping the club from breaking the glass in case of emergency.

“I don’t pay attention to that stuff,” Bolsinger said. “I’m sure my mom does, though.”