Floro throws sharp bullpen; rehab next

Injured Dodgers could return when rosters expand

August 27th, 2019

SAN DIEGO -- Dylan Floro threw a sharp bullpen session on Monday at Petco Park, and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that a rehab assignment at Class A Rancho Cucamonga on Thursday is probably next for L.A.'s right-handed reliever.

“Flo threw today and looked really good,” Roberts said. “His entire mix. It was a good day for Dylan. I saw the way the ball was coming out. He’s been working hard and he’s healthy and I can feel his excitement.”

Floro will be on schedule to return from a left intercostal strain right around Sept. 1, when rosters expand.

In fact, Floro will probably be accompanied back onto the roster with several injured teammates, like first baseman David Freese (left hamstring strain), second baseman Kristopher Negron (neck stiffness), right-handed starter Ross Stripling (right biceps tendinitis), first baseman Tyler White (right trap strain) and left-handed starter Rich Hill (left forearm strain).

“I see these guys getting really healthy,” Roberts said.

Hill is scheduled to throw a bullpen session on Tuesday, his second since suffering his injury and first to include curveballs, which require the kind of torque that will truly test his injury.

Center fielder Alex Verdugo is also on the injured list and expected back sometime in September. Verdugo is rehabbing a right oblique strain in Arizona and won’t be ready to return by Sept. 1.

Worth noting

• Catcher Russell Martin, on the bereavement list after the death of his grandmother, rejoined the club on Tuesday and is expected to start on Wednesday. Martin’s return means that Austin Barnes was sent back to Triple-A Oklahoma City, but Roberts said that Barnes will be recalled on Sept. 1.

• Roberts said the Dodgers will stick with a six-man rotation, probably until the next off-day on Sept. 5. Monday's starter, Dustin May, will start again on Saturday before resuming his relief experiment.