Saturday, April 19, 2025
Copyrighted by Sarah Morris, 2025
On Saturday, the Los Angeles Dodgers put Blake Treinen on the 15-day IL with forearm tightness and activated Evan Phillips.
So far this season, the Dodger bullpen has been the strength of the team, but losing Treinen is a blow. While the Dodgers don’t think the injury is serious, Treinen is having imaging in Dallas. The Dodgers will decide if Treinen will go on to Chicago with the team or return to Los Angeles after they receive the results of the imaging. Last year, Treinen played a vital role in the World Championship. The Dodgers hope Treinen will return soon, but everyone worries about Tommy John surgery whenever a pitcher has forearm tightness.
During the offseason, the Dodgers bolstered their bullpen by signing Tanner Scott to a four-year, $72 million contract and Kirby Yates to a one-year, $13 million contract. While Scott has struggled a bit with being a notoriously slow starter, Yates has been solid, even though he blew a save on Saturday when the Dodgers lost to the Texas Rangers 4-to-3. The Dodgers are confident Scott will be an outstanding asset to their superb bullpen.
The emergence of Ben Casparius and Jack Dreyer has been huge for the Dodgers. Yes, Casparius had a bad outing last Saturday, but he has been great. Dreyer, lefty, has allowed one run in nine games. He allows Dave Roberts to rest both Alex Vesia and Anthony Banda, both have been outstanding.
The Dodgers are still missing Brusdar Graterol and Michael Kopech. Evan Phillips was on the IL since the beginning of the 2024 World Series because of a torn rotator cuff. Since Phillips joined the Dodgers in 2021, he has been vital to the Dodgers’ success. Last year, he lost his closing job because he was ineffective. It will be interesting to see how Phillips performs in his first return from a major arm injury.
