Dodgers Manager Reveals Results of Tony Gonsolin MRI on Elbow

Another pitcher has gone down to injury in Los Angeles, sidelining an eighth starter in the Dodgers’ rotation.

Tony Gonsolin had an MRI on his elbow on Saturday, the same day the Dodgers placed the right-hander on the 15-day injured list.

Gonsolin underwent Tommy John surgery in 2023, which caused him to miss the entire 2024 season. Therefore, Gonsolin’s elbow discomfort was concerning. 

But fortunately for Gonsolin and the Dodgers, the results found no damage to his ulnar collateral ligament.

“The UCL is intact … which is great news,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “He’s going to be down from throwing. I don’t know when that is going to be again. I think the main takeaway is the UCL is intact.”

There is no timeline for how long Gonsolin will be out, and Roberts did not specify what could be causing Gonsolin’s elbow discomfort.

However, scar tissue from the surgery and inflammation in his joint are two possible explanations for Gonsolin’s pain.

“I think probably all of the above,” Roberts said. “I don’t know if there was a specific incident or if it was just the buildup of throwing.”

The Dodgers started the season with Gonsolin on the injured list but not because he was still recovering from Tommy John surgery.

Gonsolin sustained a back injury while lifting weights during spring training, which delayed his return to the mound another month.

Once the Dodgers reactivated Gonsolin on April 30, he has made seven starts. Through 36 innings, Gonsolin accrued a 5.00 ERA and threw 38 strikeouts. 

Gonsolin was one of the four healthy starters the Dodgers had. His injury leaves Los Angeles relying on Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Dustin May and Clayton Kershaw.

Los Angeles signed Gonsolin to a one-year, $5.4 million deal to avoid arbitration over the offseason, hoping for him to reemerge as the NL All-Star pitcher he was in 2022.

In the earlier seasons of his career, Gonsolin shined on the mound. He logged a 2.31 ERA and 46 strikeouts to win Baseball America’s Major League Rookie of the Year award in 2020.

That same year, Gonsolin was part of the Dodgers’ World Series championship team. 

But a left ankle sprain followed by a season-ending forearm injury that required Tommy John surgery tainted Gonsolin’s 2023 season. 

Gonsolin has been waiting for his chance to return ever since but it seems like the right-hander will be sidelined again for the foreseeable future.