When the Los Angeles Dodgers placed Julio Urías on the 15-day injured list on May 20, their initial expectation was he would only miss the required time.
His IL stint was backdated to the day prior, which made June 3 the earliest Urías could be activated. That meant the left-hander would be able to return for a start during the New York Yankees series at Dodger Stadium.
However, Urías’ recovery was a slower-than-expected process and the new target became the three games against the Philadelphia Phillies this past weekend. Urías advanced to facing batters early last week and remained on track to start the series finale at Citizens Bank Park.
That didn’t wind up coming to fruition because of lingering tightness in Urías’ left hamstring, and the Dodgers instead relied on a bullpen game.
While Urías was limited to playing catch from flat ground over the weekend, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said he should throw at least one bullpen session during their homestand, according to Bill Plunkett of the Southern California News Group:
#Dodgers Dave Roberts said he expects Julio Urias to throw one, maybe two bullpen sessions during the homestand starting Tuesday. Rehab assignment will follow at some point.
— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) June 11, 2023
Urías last pitched against the St. Louis Cardinals on May 18 at Busch Stadium, when he gave up six runs on six hits over just three innings. He allowed four homers during the outing, including three consecutive blasts in the third.
Urías is 5-4 with a 4.39 ERA, 5.32 FIP and 1.16 WHIP in 10 starts this season. His results thus far have further undermined a Dodgers starting rotation that’s struggled to remain healthy or have consistent results.
Dodgers bullpen games without Julio Urías
With Urías likely to miss at least two more turns in the rotation, the Dodgers are likely to rely on a bullpen game when his spot comes up.
They could pivot to relying on their four available starters, given multiple off days remaining in June, but the Dodgers historically prefer to provide extra rest whenever possible.
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