Tyson Wahl has played a supporting role and played it well for Crew SC since coach Gregg Berhalter took over in 2014. Wahl, an 11th-year Major League Soccer defender, has done exactly what Berhalter envisioned, providing the Crew with a dependable No. 3 center back. But Wahl is making a case to do more.

Tyson Wahl has played a supporting role and played it well for Crew SC since coach Gregg Berhalter took over in 2014.

Wahl, an 11th-year Major League Soccer defender, has done exactly what Berhalter envisioned, providing the Crew with a dependable No. 3 center back. But Wahl is making a case to do more.

He has been solid in four consecutive games playing in place of injured Gaston Sauro. Wahl, 32, was outstanding during a 1-0 loss Saturday at the Seattle Sounders in a performance Berhalter said was one of the best. It has given his coach much to think about.

The starting center back spots held by Sauro and Michael Parkhurst "can't be taken for granted," Berhalter said after practice Monday.

Sauro's salary was listed at $600,000 last season, six times that of Wahl's. Sauro's status as a targeted allocation money acquisition, as well as Parkhurst's team captaincy, make them hard to remove from the lineup. But Berhalter said Wahl "has shown he can do just as good of a job as the others. We have to take a long look at those performances and make the right decision."

Sauro has been out since suffering a strained hamstring April 9 at Montreal, but he is expected to be healthy enough to play against the Impact on Saturday at Mapfre Stadium. In his favor is his performance against the Impact during the playoffs last fall, when he shut down star striker Didier Drogba. But Wahl has proved his dependability time and again. Since 2014, the Crew is 17-6-9 in games he has started, and 14-19-11 in games he has not.

"I've always felt like I've had the ability to be an everyday starter," Wahl said. "All our jobs are to make those decisions difficult, and I think I've done that."

Finlay, Francis called in

Crew midfielder Ethan Finlay and defender Waylon Francis were named to the preliminary 40-man rosters of the United States and Costa Rica, respectively, for this summer's Copa America Centenario tournament.

Finlay made his U.S. debut in February after impressing coach Jurgen Klinsmann during a camp in January. He has since played three games for the U.S., including a 4-0 World Cup qualifying win over Guatemala in March.

Panamanian on the way

Berhalter confirmed that the Crew is completing a loan with Panama City team Chorillo FC for 19-year-old midfielder Cristian Martinez.

Martinez, an attacking midfielder who can play on both wings and in the middle, has been on trial with the Crew for the past three weeks. He can be activated as soon as the Crew clears an international roster spot, which is expected to occur when Francis acquires his green card. Martinez could spend some time with the Crew's minor-league affiliate in Pittsburgh, Berhalter said, and will have to work his way into the Crew's 18-man game roster. He was named to his country's preliminary Copa America roster.

smitchell@dispatch.com

@smitchcd