Prior to their series opener against the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Los Angeles Dodgers made a flurry of roster moves, which included recalling Andre Jackson and selecting the contract of Neftalí Féliz.
To make room for them on the active roster, the Dodgers optioned Edwin Uceta and Darien Núñez to Triple-A Oklahoma City. In somewhat of a surprise, L.A. also placed Cole Hamels to the 60-day injured list in order to clear a spot on the 40-man roster for Féliz.
The move ended Hamels’ comeback attempt before it truly began. He signed with the Dodgers earlier this month and was working to build up his arm strength in preparation of potentially joining the club in September.
Hamels last pitched on Aug. 7 when he threw only one inning of a scheduled two-inning simulated game. According to The Athletic, the left-hander sustained a shoulder injury while at Camelback Ranch preparing for his comeback bid:
Hamels has a shoulder issue, a source said.
Hamels had previous shoulder trouble with the Atlanta Braves last season that limited him to only one start. His new injury is the latest blow to a Dodgers pitching staff currently without several key contributors.
Among the starting pitchers sidelined include Clayton Kershaw, Tony Gonsolin, Julio Urias and Danny Duffy. It’s led to the club relying on several bullpen games as of late, as well as David Price re-entering the rotation after beginning the season in the bullpen.
Kershaw starts throwing program
In a bit of encouraging news, Kershaw began playing catch again on Monday. He had been shut down since the end of July after throwing three innings in a simulated game and experiencing lingering soreness in his left elbow.
“It’s kind of playing catch over the next couple days and how his arm responds to that will determine how aggressive we can be,” Roberts said. “This is the first day of catch play, and we’ll see how he feels later and [Tuesday].”
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