Going into the 2019 season, one of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ biggest strength was projected to be their left-handed relief depth as Scott Alexander, Tony Cingrani, Caleb Ferguson and Julio Urias were all expected to be key contributors out of the bullpen.
Things have not gone according to plan, however, as Cingrani did not throw a single inning before requiring season-ending shoulder surgery, while Alexander and Ferguson have both been inconsistent, with the latter recently spending some time with Triple-A Oklahoma City to get things right.
Urias has been the best of the bunch, but he is on an innings limit this season and also been needed to start games.
To make matters worse, Alexander recently went down with an injury of his own as he was placed on the 10-day injured list with left forearm inflammation on June 11.
While the injury wasn’t expected to be all that serious, the Dodgers will still allow Alexander as much time as needed to get healthy. After days of inactivity, he’s begun making strides in his rehab.
Most notably, Alexander threw a bullpen session at Dodger Stadium for the first time since his injury. “He’s getting back to health. For us to get him on the main mound, it was because we can capture some things,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
“The readings and all that stuff will come out in a little bit but I think from my eyes, the ball was coming out well. Just continuing to work on the delivery and repeat the throw. That’s something we’re still kind of working through.”
Assuming Alexander doesn’t suffer any setbacks, he will continue throwing and advance to facing batters. “I would say another bullpen session and then we’ll get him to face some hitters and get him out on assignment. When that happens, hopefully sooner than later,” Roberts added.
In 28 games this season, Alexander has gone 3-2 with a 3.63 ERA, 5.01 FIP and 1.39 WHIP with nine strikeouts and seven walks in 17.1 innings.
It may be at least another week before he heads out on a rehab assignment, so the likelihood of him returning before the All-Star break is not very high.
Roberts previously outlined a plan for injured position players A.J. Pollock and Corey Seager to begin their respective rehab assignments during the All-Star break.
If Alexander cannot prove to be healthy and effective when he returns, then Los Angeles could be in the market for a lefty reliever before the July 31 trade deadline.
