Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw is on the IL. Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw still dealing with injury, not ready for mound work

By Chelena Goldman | Last updated 5/18/22

Things aren't looking good for the Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw, who remains sidelined with SI joint inflammation.

Kershaw reportedly received an epidural on Monday and was scheduled to throw a bullpen session this week, but that was pushed back on Wednesday.

Clayton Kershaw won’t throw a bullpen today, Dave Roberts said. He doesn’t know when he will. That rules out the chances of it just being a 15-day IL stint for Kershaw, though he will keep throwing.
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) May 18, 2022

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts also said Kershaw's ailment is related to back issues he has had in the past. Various back injuries put Kershaw on the injured list in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2020.

L.A. can't afford to lose more pitchers, with both Kershaw and fellow starter Andrew Heaney out of the rotation. Heaney threw a bullpen session on Wednesday but is still a ways away from returning from a shoulder injury.

The Dodgers are in the middle of a 30-game stretch over the 31-day span and are narrowly hanging on to a lead in the NL West with just a one-game cushion on the San Diego Padres and a two-game lead on the San Francisco Giants. After they wrap up their current series with the Diamondbacks on Wednesday, they start a 10-game road trip that starts on the East Coast with series against the Philadelphia Phillies and then the Washington Nationals.

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