Dodgers' Tyler Glasnow suffers elbow injury: “It's unfortunate”

ATLANTA – What was intended to be a final checkoff of a box for Tyler Glasnow on Friday ended in a setback that once again plunges the Los Angeles Dodgers' October rotation plans into uncertainty.

Glasnow, whom the Dodgers signed during their spectacular offseason last winter and gave a nine-figure contract extension, was scheduled to pitch a simulated two-inning game at Truist Park on Friday afternoon. It would likely have been his last move before returning from the injured list. Instead, he ended the session before a hitter could even enter the batter's box. Glasnow threw about 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. “He didn't feel like he should put it out there.”

“It was the same discomfort in his right elbow that caused the Dodgers to place him on the injured list on August 16.

“It’s obviously a setback,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts.

What that means for Glasnow going forward was not immediately clear. The 31-year-old right-hander, who was voted an All-Star for the first time this season after signing a five-year, $136.5 million contract extension, was still being evaluated when Roberts spoke Friday afternoon.

“After speaking to our head coach Thomas (Albert), I think the results are pretty promising,” Roberts said of Glasnow's scans. “I don't know exactly what's behind it, but he seemed pretty pleased because the results of the scan didn't show anything, which is a good thing.”

It's another hiatus for Glasnow, who has battled a variety of injuries over the years (including Tommy John surgery in 2021) and has already set career highs in starts (22) and innings pitched (134) this season.

Time was not on their side from the beginning.

“I don't know if we have any room left,” Prior said. “It's unfortunate … not throwing today is concerning and a red flag. We'll see where we are tomorrow and have more information. Maybe it's a little blip and we can move on. But there's also the possibility that it's not, and that would obviously be devastating.”

The hope was that Glasnow would continue to improve his performance in major league games, as the Dodgers plan to do with fellow offseason signee Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who has also returned from the injured list (Yamamoto threw 59 pitches in four scoreless innings on Tuesday in his first start since a rotator cuff strain). That included the possibility of both pitching for the Dodgers in postseason games in October, even without a full pitching assignment. That's how dire the situation is for the Dodgers' pitchers, who in addition to Glasnow also have Gavin Stone and Clayton Kershaw on the injured list as pitchers who are not yet completely ruled out in October.

Kershaw has continued to throw despite pain in his left toe, dragging himself around a grassy mound as he looks for ways to throw without it being a problem. The problem, which includes a bone spur, has continued to bother Kershaw, though.

Stone is expected to try to start throwing again next week while the Dodgers are in Miami. The 25-year-old rookie described a “twitch” in his right shoulder that was similar to what he's felt before, but painful enough to alert the training staff and place him on the injured list. He, like Glasnow, has a tight schedule to improve; his status will depend heavily on how he feels while catching.

Aside from the short-term signings of Jack Flaherty and Yamamoto, not much is known about what the Dodgers' rotation will look like next month, and now Glasnow's chances of returning at all this season may be in limbo.

“How we build him up, how we get him pain-free, those are all conversations he'll have with the training staff to see where we're at,” Roberts said. “All I know right now is we weren't able to finish the simulated game today. That's telling in a lot of ways.”

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(Photo: Gene Wang/Getty Images)