Dodgers expect IL stint for two-time All-Star reliever

Dodgers right-hander Kirby Yates was pulled from Saturday’s game due to what was initially described by the team as right hamstring tightness, and later specified as a probable Grade 1 hamstring strain by manager Dave Roberts.  

“I don’t see how it’s not an IL [situation],” Roberts told Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register, though Yates will get an MRI to evaluate the severity of the injury.

It was a rough night all around for Yates, as the reliever was charged with three runs over a third of an inning pitched and was credited as the losing pitcher in the Dodgers’ 11-9 loss to the Angels. Yates retired just one of five batters faced, and after throwing a fourth ball and walking Jo Adell, Yates grabbed at his right hamstring and was in obvious discomfort on the mound.

That single tough outing boosted Yates’ ERA to 4.34 over 18 2/3 innings this season, but a .385 BABIP has contributed heavily to that inflated ERA. With a 1.90 SIERA, .282 xwOBA (which far below his .358 wOBA), and a 38.8 percent strikeout rate that is among the best in baseball, Yates has been perhaps more effective in 2025 than even during his 2024 comeback season with the Rangers, even if the bottom-line numbers have yet to reflect his performance.

Unfortunately, Yates’ hard luck looks to now continue with a trip to the Dodgers’ ever-crowded 15-day injured list. Yates would be the 14th pitcher on the Los Angeles IL, and that number expands to 15 if you count Shohei Ohtani’s continued recovery from UCL surgery. In terms of high-leverage relievers, Yates would join Evan Phillips, Michael Kopech and Blake Treinen on the sidelines, further thinning the Dodgers’ late-game options.

Assuming Yates goes on the 15-day IL Sunday, Los Angeles will probably have to call up a reliever from Triple-A just to bring a fresh arm into the pen, since five relievers were used in Saturday’s game. While navigating multiple pitching injuries has become routine for the Dodgers in recent years, one wonders if the sheer attrition will catch up to the team at some point, particularly in a 2025 season that sees L.A. battling with three competitive foes (the Padres, Giants, and Diamondbacks) in the NL West alone.