For the third straight season, the Los Angeles Dodgers have been forced to manage without ace Clayton Kershaw. It wasn’t a back injury this time around, however, as Kershaw was placed on the 10-day disabled list at the beginning of May due to bicep tendinitis.
An MRI revealed that the injury wasn’t anything more serious than that, so Kershaw was able to exhale knowing he did not have to undergo any sort of surgery on his shoulder or elbow. That allowed for him to quickly begin throwing off flat ground.
Now, almost three weeks after being placed on the disabled list, it appears Kershaw is making serious progress in his recovery as he threw his first bullpen session on Sunday, via Andy McCullough of the L.A. Times:
Kershaw completed a 30-pitch bullpen session Sunday morning. He was pitching off a mound for the first time since May 1, when the soreness in his arm first surfaced for the training staff. He has been playing catch steadily since being put on the disabled list on May 6, but Sunday represented his most significant step forward.
While he still put up solid numbers, Kershaw wasn’t quite himself this season before landing on the DL, which could be attributed to the injury.
In seven starts so far this season, Kershaw is 1-4 with a 2.86 ERA, 3.71 FIP and 1.14 WHIP while striking out 48 compared to 10 walks in 44 innings.
With Hyun-Jin Ryu already out for an extended period of time, and Rich Hill back on the disabled list with his blister issue, the Dodgers rotation is in shambles right now.
Walker Buehler and Ross Stripling have done a nice job in their place, but getting a healthy Kershaw back will be imperative for the Dodgers if they want to get back into the playoff picture this season.
