The Los Angeles Dodgers reinstated Blake Snell, optioned Charlie Barnes to Triple-A Oklahoma City and transferred Blake Treinen to the 60-day injured list in order to make room on their 40-man roster. Snell’s return comes as he starts Tuesday’s game against the Kansas City Royals.
Treinen had been on the 15-day IL since June 20 and was projected to miss a significant amount of time because of right elbow inflammation. Treinen has gone 4-1 with a 3.52 ERA in 29 games this season while having somewhat of a rebound year. Across 23 innings, he’s struck out 9.78 hitters per nine while walking 3.91 per nine while also pitching to a 3.49 FIP.
Treinen dealt with right forearm tightness last season, which resulted in an extended absence as well. He was eventually transferred to the 60-day injured list and ultimately missed just over three months.
The latest roster move doesn’t have much impact on Treinen’s timeline other than making Wednesday, Aug. 19, the earliest he can be activated. Though, that seemingly is out of the question given that he hasn’t started a rehab assignment.
Barnes and Seth Halvorsen were both added to the bullpen before the series opener against the Royals but neither pitched despite Tarik Skubal only going five innings in his Dodgers home debut.
Across his multiple stints with the Dodgers this season, Barnes is 0-1 with a 6.30 ERA and 1.70 WHIP in four appearances. He last pitched for the team July 26 in the series finale against the New York Mets.
Blake Snell looking to remain healthy
Snell is back from the injured list after making just one start so far this year. He began the season on the IL due to left shoulder trouble and landed back on there in May. But that was for a left elbow injury that ultimately required surgery to remove loose bodies.
Although the operation specifically addressed Snell’s elbow, he said his throwing shoulder has been in much better standing as well. A lengthy recovery process included a rehab assignment that comprised of four starts.
He pitched twice for Triple-A Oklahoma City, then reported to Single-A Ontario for one outing before finishing with the Comets.
In the start for the Tower Buzzers, he allowed just one hit and struck out nine batters over four scoreless innings. But in Snell’s final rehab game with the Comets, pitching at hitter-friendly The Ballpark at America First Square in Jordan, Utah, presented a unique set of circumstances.
Snell walked four batters, gave up two home runs and got through just 3.2 innings. He fell short of reaching the goal of five innings, but the Dodgers felt confident in having Snell return. That being said, he likely won’t go past 80 pitches on Tuesday.
Even with spending essentially the entirety of the season on the injured list, Snell reached 10 years of Major League service time last month.
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