Dodgers Activate Blake Snell

The Dodgers have officially reinstated Blake Snell from the 60-day injured list. He’ll start tonight’s game against the Royals, who’ll run Michael Wacha in Game 2 of the series. Lefty Charlie Barnes was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City to open a spot on the pitching staff. The Dodgers transferred Blake Treinen to the 60-day injured list in the necessary 40-man roster move.

Snell is back after a three-month absence. Injuries have limited him to one start and three innings this year. The two-time Cy Young winner was delayed this spring by shoulder fatigue that traced back to the 2025 postseason. The team slow-played his buildup and didn’t activate him for his season debut until six weeks into the season. Snell made one start and promptly returned to the injured list, this time due to an elbow issue.

Testing revealed loose bodies which needed surgical removal. Snell opted for the NanoNeedle procedure that now-teammate Tarik Skubal had first tried a couple weeks earlier. That dramatically expedited Skubal’s return, as he was back on the roster within six weeks. Snell’s timeline was more in line with a typical arthroscopic surgery.

The Dodgers had more reason to slow-play Snell’s return than the Tigers did with Skubal. Los Angeles is comfortably ticketed for a playoff berth. Snell is coming off a year in which he threw 95 1/3 innings between the regular season and postseason. This is his third straight injury-shortened year. The primary focus is on having Snell at full strength in October.

All that said, they’re surely happy to get him back amidst their worst stretch of the season. They recently lost seven straight and are 2-7 since the beginning of August. They’re still not in much danger of squandering their NL West lead but are behind Milwaukee and tied with Atlanta at the top of the National League. There’s a significant advantage to finishing as a top-two seed and avoiding the first round, even if the Dodgers would be favored over whomever snags the final Wild Card spot. Any MLB team can beat any other in a three-game series.

Snell began a rehab assignment shortly after the All-Star Break and has made four minor league starts. He struggled in his most recent outing against the Angels’ Triple-A team but tossed 73 pitches and is working on six days rest tonight.

The Dodgers intend to use a six-man rotation with Snell back in the fold, manager Dave Roberts told reporters (link via Dylan Hernández of The California Post). Eric Lauer maintains his hold on a spot for at least one more turn behind Skubal, Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Justin Wrobleski and Roki Sasaki. Someone will be squeezed out when Tyler Glasnow returns from the back issue that has cost him the last three months. The Dodgers have halted Shohei Ohtani as a pitcher because of a left knee concern but maintain that he’ll pitch again this season.

Treinen’s IL transfer is a procedural move. The 60-day minimum backdates to his initial placement on June 20. Treinen will be eligible to return a week from now but is unlikely to be ready by then, as he has yet to begin a rehab assignment. The veteran reliever has been sidelined by elbow inflammation.