PHILADELPHIA — The Dodgers placed starting pitcher Blake Snell on the injured list Sunday with left shoulder inflammation, dealing the first injury blow to their starting rotation this season.
Snell’s IL stint was backdated to April 3, meaning the $182-million offseason signing will be out at least through the end of next week’s homestand.
Manager Dave Roberts didn’t have a specific timeline for Snell’s expected absence, but said the left-hander would miss a minimum of two starts.
Before his injury was announced Sunday, Snell threw off the bullpen mound at Citizens Bank Park, then spoke with general manager Brandon Gomes and head trainer Thomas Albert for several minutes in the outfield.
Roberts said Snell reported soreness, prompting the Dodgers to shelve him ahead of his next scheduled start Tuesday.
“If you’re not going to finish your bullpen, that’s pretty much a tell-all to then kind of nip whatever is going on in his arm,” Roberts said.
The Dodgers called up reliever Matt Sauer in a corresponding move, but are without a clear starter for either Tuesday or Wednesday (when they were already planning to go with a bullpen game or spot starter, rather than pitch Yoshinobu Yamamoto on four days’ rest).
The team does have depth options in triple A, including Landon Knack, Bobby Miller and Justin Wrobleski.
“One day you feel good with where you’re at, and then the next day you’re scrambling a little bit,” Roberts said of the uncertainty in the starting rotation. “That’s part of the marathon of a major-league season.”
