The Hawaii baseball team’s pitching rotation is receiving a left-handed complement.

Dominic DeMiero rejoins the starting rotation for the three-game series against UC Irvine that begins tonight at Les Murakami Stadium. DeMiero had missed two starts because of tenderness in his left (pitching) arm.

Brendan Hornung will start tonight, DeMiero on Sunday evening, and Jackson Rees on Monday night. There will be no game on Saturday because of UH’s graduation ceremony.

After consecutive sub-par starts, it was decided DeMiero would be held out the series against Cal State Northridge two weeks ago. He did not start in the series against Cal State Fullerton, but pitched 5 1/3 innings of relief on Sunday, allowing two runs and walking one.

“I was a lot more sound,” DeMiero said of his first relief appearance in recent memory. “I was able to keep the ball down in the zone.”

DeMiero said his break was precautionary. “I had this different type of soreness,” DeMiero said of the arm problem two weeks ago. “One of our exercise trainers tells us you want to do the ‘pre-hab’ so you won’t have to do the rehab. He said it was nothing serious but it wouldn’t hurt to take a weekend off. … I’m good to go. Absolutely.”

Rees, who made two starts in place of DeMiero, has been better when he opens games. In eight starts, Rees is 5-0 with a 2.62 ERA and 1.22 WHIP. In three relief appearances, he has an 11.17 ERA and 2.48 WHIP.

“You look at his small sample size — it’s only three times out of the pen — but he hasn’t been as effective as when he’s started,” UH coach Mike Trapasso said of Rees.

Rees, who is willing to be used in any role, said he has a set routine on nights he starts. He said he turns his iPhone to airplane mode, avoids social media, listens to music and gets a clean shave. “I like to be able to go away from everything and come into the game with a clear mind,” Rees said.

Trapasso said he is hopeful Hornung regains the form that made him a dominant pitcher earlier in the season. In his first nine starts, Hornung had a 2.26 ERA and averaged 0.62 walks and 8.16 strikeouts per nine innings. In the past three starts, his ERA is 6.63. He has walked seven in the past two games after allowing six in the first 10 starts.

“It’s all mechanical,” Trapasso said. “He’s got to make that adjustment. I expect him to throw well out here and fix it. But he hasn’t the last couple outings. He has to get back to basics and stop trying to do too much. He’s losing what makes him effective, which is his stacking (hip drive) and staying level.”

Neil Uskali, who is 6-3 with a 3.93 ERA in 12 starts, will be available as a reliever this series. “He’ll do well whether you start him or relieve him,” Trapasso said. “He’s got the mentality to do well.”

Irvine is 17-29 overall and 4-11 in the Big West. But the Anteaters twice beat fifth-ranked TCU in March. Keston Hiura, who has been limited to designated-hitter duty because of an injury, is hitting .405 with eight home runs and an on-base percentage of .684. Last summer, he played for USA Baseball’s collegiate national team.

“They’ve got one of the premier coaches in the history of baseball in Mike Gillespie,” Trapasso said. Gillespie won the College World Series with USC in 1998. “They’re one of the better offensive clubs in our league. Why their record (17-29 overall, 4-11 in Big West) is what it is, I don’t know. They’re capable of beating anybody. That’s life in the Big West. There are no weeks off when you’re playing a Mike Gillespie team.”