As has been the case over the past few years, the Los Angeles Dodgers’ starting pitching depth has been put to the test. It’s occurred early the 2020 season due to a few of their regular starters missing time because of injury
Alex Wood began the season in the rotation but was only able to make one start before landing on the 10-day injured list with shoulder inflammation. All reports since have been positive, and it seems Wood’s return could be just around the corner.
He threw his first simulated game on Wednesday, and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts reported that he came out of it feeling encouraged and is scheduled for another round of facing batters.
“It went pretty well. He went three innings, got through it. I thought the stuff was fine. There’s a little bit of trying to get loose after the second inning,” Roberts said. “There’s normal soreness but he’s at the secondary site playing catch.
“As we sit here right now, the plan is for him to throw a four-inning simulated game on Monday, so that’s positive.”
The starters that have filled in for Wood and others who have missed time have given the Dodgers solid production to this point. Because of that, they have no real reason to rush Wood back into action, especially considering he is dealing with a shoulder issue.
As the playoffs draw closer though, the Dodgers will need to form their four-man rotation, and Wood will have to prove that he is healthy and pitching well to be in that mix.
If he comes out of his four-inning simulated game feeling good again, then his next outing after that could very well come in a big-league game, which would give him about a month to get ready for the postseason.
Performance didn’t play a factor in optioning Gonsolin
One of the replacement starters that has been great for the Dodgers so far this season is Tony Gonsolin, who has yet to give up a run in 14.2 innings across three starts.
He was optioned to the team’s alternate training site before Wednesday’s game against the Seattle Mariners, although Roberts said performance was not the reason for that.
“Looking out to the 17 days in a row, the idea of getting Tony a couple starts was something we wanted to do whether he pitched well or didn’t pitch well. We wanted to get him that experience. Fortunately for all of us, he pitched great,” Roberts explained.
“To have him go to that secondary site, throw his ‘pen on Day 3 and stay on a regular routine just in case something does happen, certainly the hope and goal is to get Tony back at some point.”
With Gonsolin’s emergence and Wood getting back in the mix soon, the Dodgers certainly have no shortage of quality starters at their disposal to finish out the season.
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