While the Los Angeles Dodgers were losing one starting pitcher after another to the disabled list, Scott Kazmir and Kenta Maeda continued to make their regular turns. Even as Kazmir struggled through a stretch of starts, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts remained confident in the southpaw and lauded his durability.
While Maeda has managed to avoid the injury bug, Kazmir fell victim to it after throwing just 2.2 innings against the Cincinnati Reds. He allowed four runs on six hits and walked three.
It was revealed after that start he’d been dealing with neck and upper back issues, and the Dodgers put Kazmir on the disabled list on Aug. 23.
He was cautiously optimistic after throwing a simulated game one week later. That optimism quickly washed away when Kazmir was unable to make it out of the first inning of his rehab start this week with Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Kazmir was sent for a bone scan and Roberts expects him to at least miss most of September, per Bill Plunkett of the OC Register:
“Once we get the imaging we’ll have more clarity. But to come out of a game after X amount of pitches – it’s going to take some time to get back,” Roberts said. “To ramp back up, obviously there’s a shutdown period, it’s a couple weeks, with where we’re at on the calendar – it’s going to be a conversation. We’ll see.”
The Dodgers have not yet announced the results of the exam. But with Roberts expecting the 32-year-old to miss time, availability for the postseason certainly comes into question. The immediate response to losing Kazmir is giving Jose De Leon another start.
The rookie right-hander is slated to face the New York Yankees in Monday’s series opener. Los Angeles signed Kazmir to a three-year, $48 million contract in the offseason. His deal includes an opt-out clause after this season and deferred salaries.
Kazmir is 10-6 on the season with a 4.59 ERA, 4.49 FIP, 1.35 WHIP, 134 strikeouts and 52 walk in 135.1 innings pitched over 25 starts. He walked at least three batters in each of his last four outings leading up to the stint on the disabled list.
