The Los Angeles Dodgers welcomed back Cody Bellinger and Zach McKinstry over the weekend, and soon could activate Tony Gonsolin, Jimmy Nelson and AJ Pollock. However, there may now be cause for some concern with Blake Treinen, who was unavailable Monday night.
“There was a little something in his pregame, that his body didn’t feel right, so wanted to make sure to just give him an extra day,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts explained a 9-4 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.
Roberts did not offer any other specifics, nor indicate whether Treinen would need to miss more games or potentially be put on the 10-day injured list.
Treinen last pitched May 28 on the second of back-to-back appearances. He surrendered a two-run home run and retired two of five batters faced prior to being removed.
The veteran has pitched regularly throughout the season, but did just go a stretch of not appearing in four games over five days. “Competitively, it sucks,” he admitted last week.
“You always want to compete, but you take those days because there’s going to be times where you’re used five out of seven, three out of five. It kind of balances itself out, so you thank the lord for your time off and use it to your advantage to rest up, refine your craft a little bit on some things you feel like you can clean up.
“When our starters are going seven or eight innings, it kind of takes away opportunities for guys in the bullpen. We’ve got guys that are trying to get matchups and trying to throw to stay fresh. Some of those games we had larger leads, and that kind of dictates who’s going to throw as well.
“You find ways. Like I get off the mound almost daily, right after catch play. For me, it’s not a big deal. I love competing, so inside of me I’m always hoping for an opportunity. But I understand we’ve got perfect plans laid out and we do such a great job of making sure people are prepared for the long haul.”
Treinen is 1-1 with two saves, a 3.05 ERA and 1.21 WHIP over 22 games thus far. Like last season, he has been trusted in high leverage situations and is considered among the backup options to Kenley Jansen as closer.
Injured Dodgers relief pitchers
In addition to Nelson, Scott Alexander, Garrett Cleavinger, Brusdar Graterol and Corey Knebel are relief pitchers currently on the IL who the Dodgers anticipate returning at some point this season.
It may not be long for Cleavinger and Graterol, with Alexander slightly behind them. Meanwhile, Knebel is further down the road as he continues to recover from a right lat strain.
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