Los Angeles Dodgers pitching prospect Josiah Gray threw two perfect innings for Triple-A Oklahoma City on Sunday in his first start since May 6. The right-hander had been on the injured list due to a right shoulder impingement felt while warming up for his second outing.
Gray collected one strikeout and threw 27 pitches, including 20 strikes, in his return to the mound. Oklahoma City hit two home runs and were led by a game-high three RBI from Zach Reks in a 6-3 win over the Salt Lake Bees (L.A. Angels affiliate).
The start was a bit of a surprising development with Gray, considering Dodgers manager Dave Roberts recently said any sort of a timetable to get the 23-year-old back into game action wasn’t set.
Gray’s shoulder injury forced the Dodgers to adjust their plans when Dustin May was lost for the year to Tommy John surgery. Roberts recently revealed the club was looking to promote Gray for his MLB debut in May, but needed to put that on hold because of the impingement.
Now Gray may be counted due to the uncertainty with Trevor Bauer’s status amid investigations into alleged sexual assault. However, the highly-touted prospect isn’t necessarily on the verge of joining the Dodgers quite yet.
“I would say option in the near future, probably not,” Roberts said. “To get him back, get him built up to get some length and also perform to show he’s healthy, we’re still down the road on that one. We’ll see as time goes on.”
Should Gray make a normal progression for a starting pitcher and not suffer any setbacks with his shoulder, that still would be at least three weeks before being fully stretched out to start for the Dodgers.
Gray wanted to prove value
Heading into the 2021 season, Gray was focused on continuing to develop and demonstrate his worth in the organization.
“I’ve heard a lot of what everyone else has said: ‘Just kind of stay ready, go out and prove you can be an asset for us at the big league level.’ That’s what I’m aiming to do,” Gray said back in May.
“I haven’t heard much about what I have to do. I just know that being a pitcher, you have to pitch well. That’s kind of what my mentality is. I’ll kind of let the cards fall how they may, depending on how this year goes. Kind of just staying healthy, going out there and giving it my all.”
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