ST. LOUIS -- Left-hander Blake Snell may have only one more box to check on his rehab assignment before his much-anticipated season debut with L.A.
Snell stretched out to four innings on 55 pitches (37 strikes) in his third Minor League rehab start on Sunday afternoon. It was Snell's first appearance with Triple-A Oklahoma City after making his first two outings with Single-A Ontario. The southpaw held the Round Rock Express to two runs on two hits and a walk, striking out four.
The goal is for Snell to reach the five-inning, 75-pitch range before he's an option to return to the Dodgers. He should reach that in his next rehab start, which is expected to be Friday or Saturday, meaning that he should be on track to slot into L.A.'s rotation during the week of May 11.
The Express tagged Snell for a pair of runs in the first inning, when he gave up a leadoff single to Cameron Cauley, followed by a one-out, two-run blast from Michael Helman. But Snell settled down afterward, retiring 10 of his last 11 hitters. He walked Justin Foscue with one out in the fourth, but Foscue was quickly erased on an inning-ending double play.
Snell began this year on the injured list due to fatigue in his left shoulder, which cost him four months on the IL in 2025, the first season of his five-year, $182 million contract with the Dodgers. He later said his shoulder never quite felt right, even as he helped anchor the rotation down the stretch and during the postseason.
With Snell's return imminent, the Dodgers are getting closer to having to decide who stays in their rotation. One of Justin Wrobleski, Emmet Sheehan or Roki Sasaki is expected to be the odd man out, and all three should get one more start to make their case to keep their starting job.