Blake Snell Update: Throwing Program Off To Encouraging Start

The Los Angeles Dodgers are anticipating welcoming back multiple injured pitchers in the near future, and Blake Snell could be part of that group.

Snell played catch on Monday for the first time since being placed on the 15-day injured list because of left shoulder inflammation. When approached by DodgerBlue.com and more reporters, Snell said, “It was good.”

That was a sentiment manager Dave Roberts echoed.

“He came out of it well. I saw it from afar, throw looked good. Talked to him briefly afterward and he said he felt better than he hoped or expected,” Roberts added.

“It was probably 20 to 30 throws. It looked good. Arm action was clean and looked good.”

The Dodgers hope Snell can play catch again Tuesday, but won’t have more clarity on that possibility until he reports to Dodger Stadium.

Snell labored through two starts in his first season with the Dodgers before landing on the IL. He revealed the shoulder inflammation had been present for multiple weeks, but an MRI offered encouraging results as it did not reveal any structural damage. For now it’s not believed a second MRI will be required.

“They had the imaging, I think when we were in D.C., and we feel good about where he’s at,” Roberts said. “Given he hasn’t really done anything, I don’t think right now. Maybe down the road, but hopefully symptomatically he feels good.”

Blake Snell rehab assignment?

While Tony Gonsolin is nearing the end of his rehab assignment and Clayton Kershaw is starting one Wednesday, it’s not yet clear if Snell will need to pitch for a Minor League affiliate as well.

“I think that’s contingent on how long he’s down,” Roberts said. “The longer, the more possibility. If it’s on the shorter side, then probably not. … It hasn’t been that long, so if he can get back and feel good, frisky, then we can move it quicker. And if not, then we’ve got to slow-play him.”