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The Los Angeles Dodgers have been rolling recently, winning 8 of their last 10 games and building an 8-game lead over the San Diego Padres in the National League West. They have managed to get hot and establish firm control in their division even though they have suffered numerous injuries to their pitching staff.
However, the pitching staff is getting healthy once again. Manager Dave Roberts expects to have ace Blake Snell in the Dodgers rotation shortly, and he also said that key reliever Blake Treinen is expected to return to the bullpen. Both pitchers should return to active duty shortly after the All-Star break.
Shohei Ohtani has already returned to the rotation and has been able to serve as an opener in 4 games since returning to mound duties. He has pitched 1 inning in his first two starts and 2 innings in his third start. He made his fourth start Saturday night against the Houston Astros and pitched 2 scoreless innings.
The Dodgers have been using Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Dustin May as their two primary starters this season. Yamamoto has mad 17 starts and has pitched 96.2 innings this season. He has an 8-6 record along with a 2.51 earned run average.
May has a 5-5 record with a 4.52 ERA in his 16 starts. He has struck out 84 batters in 89.2 innings. Star pitcher Clayton Kershaw has made 9 starts and has a 4-0 record with a 3.43 ERA. He recently struck out the 3,000th batter of his career.
Snell is coming back from shoulder injury
Snell only made two starts this season before a shoulder injury took him out of the Dodgers rotation. Once he returns and is able to demonstrate that he is healthy and comfortable on the mound, he is very likely to be the ace of the Dodgers staff.
He was at his best in 2023 with the Padres when he made 32 starts and had a 14-9 record with a 2.25 ERA. The left-hander struck out 234 batters in 180.0 innings. He has a 77-58 career record and has won the Cy Young Award twice and has also been an All-Star.
Snell was 5-3 last year with the San Francisco Giants with a 3.12 ERA while making 20 starts and pitching 104.0 innings. The key for Snell will be his ability to put batters away with his strikeout pitch. He struck out just 4 batters in 9.0 innings before he went on the Injured List this season.
Treinen has been on the Injured List with a low-grade forearm sprain. The injury did not require surgery but he has needed rest.
Treinen is an 11-year veteran and he has spent five seasons with the Dodgers. He pitched in 50 games last year and had a 7-3 record and a 1.93 ERA. He struck out 56 batters in 46.2 innings.
