What is the ETA for Clayton Kershaw?
@PaulVCataldo
The club isn't saying. I have no idea how long Kershaw will be out. I don't know if the biceps tendinitis caused his loss of fastball velocity, or if expending extra effort trying to regain velocity caused the injury. Or neither. Until last week, Kershaw said he'd felt better than he had in a long while.
I can tell you other pitchers that have had biceps tendinitis start with anti-inflammatory medication and rest. Then they do stretching therapy. Then strengthening. Then resume a progressive throwing program, gradually lengthening in distance, graduating to a mound, then a Minor League rehab assignment. Hard to imagine all of that happening in less than a month, but it varies by case and severity of injury. And this is, after all, Clayton Kershaw. There's really no known comparison.
:: Submit a question to the Dodgers Inbox ::
Why didn't medical experts suggest Corey Seager undergo Tommy John surgery in the offseason?
@Troy_on_Hudson
It was an option. As was rehab. Sometimes the ligament isn't completely torn and the decision falls into a gray area. Sometimes ligaments heal without surgery -- and without missing an entire season. Sometimes the issue is a bone spur growing into a ligament, which further complicates the decision. Knowing that he'd be out for the season for sure if he had the surgery, Seager decided to rehab his right elbow and strengthen the shoulder over the winter and see if he could get through the season. He got through one month.
Never heard of an umpire fining a player, as you wrote. I thought that was the league's job?
@jimhosang
You're right, I'm wrong. Plate umpire and crew chief Jerry Layne pointed at Joc Pederson when he slammed his bat and helmet on April 30. It was a warning that a repeat could result in ejection. According to MLB officials, umpires submit incident reports to MLB's chief baseball officer Joe Torre. With that umpire input, Torre has authority to hand down follow-up discipline like fines or suspensions. Umpires can warn and eject.
How many more games and at-bats does Kemp need to be listed among the league leaders?
-- Greg O.
Through Sunday's game, Kemp was three at-bats shy of qualifying. His .333 average would have him tied for second in the National League in batting.
Now that Alex Verdugo and Walker Buehler are basically locks on the big league roster, do the Dodgers have any other first-rate Minor Leaguers in the system that could be huge impact players down the line?
@UpandAdam6
None are as Major League ready as Buehler and Verdugo, the Dodgers' top two prospects, but seven of the next top eight prospects in the system are at Double-A Tulsa, and promotions from that level to the Major Leagues have occurred with more frequency in recent years. Of that group, two are catchers (Keibert Ruiz and Will Smith) and three are outfielders (Yusniel Diaz, DJ Peters and Jeren Kendall). All are considered likely Major Leaguers, as are right-handed pitchers Mitchell White and Dennis Santana. All had looks with the big club in Spring Training, another sign of high expectations, just not yet.