With a little over one week remaining until Opening Day of the 2017 season, the Los Angeles Dodgers front office and manager Dave Roberts are continue to work toward settling on which 25 players to carry on their active roster.
Some of their toughest decisions lie with the pitching staff, both because of having several options but also injuries. Last season, the Dodgers tied a team record by using 25 different pitchers.
One of those was Josh Ravin, whom some believed was a candidate for an expanded role in 2017. He threw a bullpen session this week after being sidelined with a groin injury.
Ravin advanced to throwing live batting practice on Friday, only to re-injure his groin. The expectation is that Ravin will begin the season on the disabled list, via Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:
Reliever Josh Ravin aggravated his strained right groin during a live batting practice session on Friday and is headed to the disabled list.
The hard throwing right-hander has gone through quite the journey in his professional career, as he finally made his Major League debut for the Dodgers in 2015 after spending nine years in the Minors.
Ravin ended that season on a high note, and it looked as if there could be a spot for him in the bullpen in 2016. However, he was involved in a car accident during that spring and suffered a fractured forearm.
While recovering from the injury and subsequent surgery, Ravin tested positive for a performing enhancing drug, and was handed a 50-game suspension from MLB. Ravin eventually made his return and pitched well.
In 10 appearances for the Dodgers, he had a 0.93 ERA, giving up just two hits and one run in 9.2 innings while striking out 13 and walking four. The impressive showing came with some frustration though, as Ravin was ineligible for the postseason due to the PED suspension.
The 29-year-old yielded a 13.50 ERA and had seven strikeouts in five Cactus League appearances this year. He last pitched in a game on March 13.
