Dodgers Dugout: It must be May, because Blake Snell is injured

Blake Snell sits in the dugout after giving up four runs to the Atlanta Braves on May 9. Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell and I’m wondering whatever happened to good old rotator cuff injuries? So, you might want to sit down for this shocking news, but Blake Snell is on the injured list. He has what must be the trending injury this season: “loose bodies” in his pitching elbow. Loose bodies are cartilage or bone fragments that float around in the fluid of the elbow joint. Reliever Edwin Díaz is also on the IL because of “loose bodies.” Some pitchers have loose bodies and it’s not a problem. Díaz said he has had loose bodies since 2014. It’s when they move into a position that cause the elbow to lock up that causes a problem. Snell will have surgery Tuesday, and his return depends on what type of surgery he needs. There is a version of the surgery that is less invasive, and basically entails a small incision in the elbow, and there’s a version that is more invasive. Doctors won’t know until they get a look inside his elbow. “He said he was just excited to have a date on the calendar to get it taken care of, get back to playing catch and getting back to joining us,” Dave Roberts said. The question has been asked frequently since he went on the IL: Why do the Dodgers sign or trade for so many injured pitchers? Well, for one, almost every pitcher in the majors now has some sort of injury history. In the olden days, pitchers didn’t throw as hard as they could on every pitch. Now they do. That puts tremendous strain on the elbow and shoulder. Also, spin rate (how fast the ball spins after being released) is king, and that also puts tremendous strain on the elbow and shoulder. Finding a pitcher without an injury history of some sort is difficult. And the Dodgers would much rather this happen now than in September. The Dodgers built this team (and teams in years past) to withstand this sort of injury. So, if Snell and Tyler Glasnow have to spend some time on the IL now, it’s OK as long as they come back by September and are ready for the postseason. Last season, Glasnow made only 18 starts, pitching 90 1/3 innings. Snell made only 11 starts, pitching 61 1/3 innings. They pitched well when they were healthy, and they were in the postseason, where Glasnow pitched 21 1/3 innings with a 1.69 ERA and Snell pitched 34 innings with a 3.18 ERA. If they can do that again this season, the Dodgers will be pleased. The Dodgers have won two straight World Series. so we should probably give them the benefit of the doubt that they know what they are doing. Starting pitchers for the Dodgers last season: That’s 17 starting pitchers each season. So this is nothing new. This season is looking amazingly like last season. And that one turned out pretty well. Here come the Padres Nothing cures a team’s woes this season better than playing three games against the Angels. But starting tonight, the Dodgers begin a three-game series with the San Diego Padres. The Dodgers and Padres have been battling for the NL West lead almost the entire season. This will be a good test for both teams to see exactly how they stack up. It’s in San Diego, and Padres fans always gear up for games against the Dodgers. The Dodgers view the season as just getting ready for the postseason, but the Padres treat these games as if they were the World Series. How will the teams respond? It will be interesting to see. The Dodgers used a bullpen game on Friday after Snell went on the IL. So, they reshuffled the bullpen on Sunday to get some fresh arms in preparation for the Padres series. They acquired left-hander Eric Lauer from the Toronto Blue Jays for cash considerations. Lauer pitched 5 2/3 scoreless innings against the Dodgers in the World Series last season, but has not been good this season, giving up a league-leading 11 home runs in 36 1/3 innings. To make room on the 40-man roster, they put Brusdar Graterol on the 60-day IL. Also, they put Jack Dreyer on the 15-day IL with a sore shoulder and recalled Paul Gervase and Chayce McDermott from the minors while sending Charlie Barnes back to the minors. Coming soon, we will count down the greatest moments in Dodgers history. But first, let’s make sure every great moment is considered. So email me your more obscure pick for a greatest moment candidate. You don’t have to send in World Series victories, or Kirk Gibson‘s homer, or obvious ones like that. But if there is a moment you think might be overlooked, email it to me. I’ll compile a list and we will vote on it. How notable players who were with the Dodgers the last couple of seasons are doing with their new teams. Click on the player’s name to be taken to their full stats page: Austin Barnes: out of baseball (released by Mets in spring training) Alex Verdugo: Out of baseball, had season-ending shoulder surgery In case you missed it Shaikin: Hey, young athletes: Would you trust this former Dodgers pitcher to manage your money? How Shohei Ohtani scored a Little League home run during Dodgers’ rout of Angels Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell scheduled for arm surgery, timeline for return is unclear Dodgers’ Blake Snell returns to injured list with loose bodies in his left elbow Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at . To get this newsletter in your inbox, .