ATLANTA — What was supposed to be a checking of the final box for Tyler Glasnow on Friday resulted in a setback that will once again thrust the Los Angeles Dodgers’ rotation plans for October into uncertainty.
Glasnow, who the Dodgers acquired and gave a nine-figure extension during their splashy offseason this past winter, was slated to pitch a two-inning simulated game on Friday afternoon at Truist Park in what likely would’ve been his final step before returning off the injured list. Instead, he cut off the session before a hitter could even step into the batter’s box. Glasnow threw around 20 warm-up pitches in the bullpen before signaling to Dodgers staff that he could not continue.
“He just said it wasn’t good,” pitching coach Mark Prior said. “It didn’t feel like he should take it out there.
“It was the same discomfort in his right elbow that caused the Dodgers to place him on the injured list on Aug. 16.
“Obviously, it’s a setback,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
What it means for Glasnow going forward was not immediately clear. The 31-year-old right-hander, a first-time All-Star this season after signing a five-year, $136.5 million extension, was still being evaluated as Roberts spoke Friday afternoon. He will likely require further testing.
It’s another interruption for Glasnow, who has dealt with a litany of injuries over the years (including Tommy John surgery in 2021) and set career-highs in starts (22) and innings pitched (134) already this season.
Time was hardly on their side to begin with.
“I don’t know if we have margins anymore,” Prior said. “It’s unfortunate….by not throwing today, that’s a concern and a red flag. We’ll see where we’re at tomorrow and have more information. Maybe it’s a hiccup and we can continue. But there’s also a chance that it might not be and obviously that would be devastating.”
The hope had been for Glasnow to continue building up in big league games, much as the Dodgers plan to do with fellow offseason acquisition Yoshinobu Yamamoto from his own return from the injured list (Yamamoto threw 59 pitches over four scoreless innings in his first start back from a strained rotator cuff on Tuesday). That included the possibility of both pitching postseason games for the Dodgers this October even without a full allotment of pitches. So dire is the state of the Dodgers’ pitching, which includes Gavin Stone and Clayton Kershaw alongside Glasnow as pitchers currently on the injured list who have not been completely ruled out to contribute this October.
Kershaw has continued to throw even with discomfort in his left toe, lugging around a turf mound as he looks to find ways to pitch without it being an issue. The issue, which includes a bone spur, has continued to bother Kershaw nonetheless.
Stone is expected to try resuming throwing next week while the Dodgers are in Miami. The 25-year-old rookie described feeling a “pinch” in his right shoulder that was similar to what he had felt before, but painful enough to alert the training staff and land him on the injured list. He, like Glasnow, has a tight schedule to ramp up; much of his status will depend on how he feels playing catch.
Outside of deadline acquisition Jack Flaherty and Yamamoto, not much is solid about what the Dodgers’ rotation will look like next month. Now, Glasnow’s odds of returning at all this season might be up in the air.
“How we build him up, how we get him pain-free, all those are conversations he’s got to have with the training staff to see where we’re at,” Roberts said. “All I know right now is that we couldn’t finish the simulated game today. That’s telling in a lot of senses.”
(Photo: Gene Wang / Getty Images)
