The Los Angeles Dodgers are set to welcome back Hyeseong Kim and Michael Kopech once active rosters expand with the calendar reaching September, and it’s plausible Max Muncy, Alex Vesia and Tommy Edman aren’t far behind.
Meanwhile, Roki Sasaki is in the midst of completing a rehab assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City but how he’ll potentially fit back in with the Dodgers roster is unclear.
Getting healthy has been a challenge for the Dodgers throughout the season, but with several players trending in a positive direction, the team appears to be in good position as they enter the final month locked in a battle with the San Diego Padres for the National League West title.
Dodgers updates
Roki Sasaki
Sasaki has already made three rehab starts for the Comets to mixed results and is scheduled for another at some point this week.
“The thought is to get him through five innings. I think for us, it’s just trying to get some consistency out of him to build him up and also at this point in time, just to perform,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.
“Our starters are pitching well, so the bar is high. This is a good kind of learning process for Roki. Just continue to pound the strike zone, command the baseball and perform.”
Tommy Edman
Edman has been out since Aug. 4 because of a sprained right ankle. The ankle has given Edman trouble throughout the year, which prompted the Dodgers to take a cautious approach with his rehab process.
Edman steadily began increasing his level of activity upon meeting the team in San Diego, and on Sunday went through drills in center field.
“That was good,” Roberts said.
Next for Edman is beginning a rehab assignment with Oklahoma City at some point this week.
Alex Vesia
Alarm bells sounded when the Dodgers put Vesia on the 15-day injured list with a strained right oblique, but he and the team immediately downplayed concern over the injury.
Like Edman, the left-handed relief pitcher is on track to begin a rehab assignment in the next few days.
“Vesia is doing well,” Roberts said.
Vesia previously estimated he would not need extra time, if any at all, from the minimum required stay on the IL.
Max Muncy
Perhaps one of the more consequential players the Dodgers are awaiting the return of, Muncy’s recovery from a Grade 1 right oblique strain hit a snag in recent days due to contracting a cold.
“Max is still recovering, but we expect him to do some velocity [Monday] and expect him to go out this week,” Roberts said.
The biggest change with Muncy falling under the weather is he no longer is a possibility to be activated at the end of the Dodgers’ road trip that begins Tuesday.
Thus, the earliest Muncy will return is Monday, Sept. 8.
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