Blake

Snell

It sounds like the Dodgers are planning to bring Snell along extremely slowly over the next two months as he gradually builds up his pitch count and stamina until he’s ready to make his season debut at some point in May. He’s been working his way back from a shoulder injury that put him behind the rest of the rotation earlier in camp. The same goes for Edman, who is still working his way back from offseason ankle surgery, and didn’t end up appearing in any spring training contests.

The good news is that the 33-year-old southpaw experienced no issues with the session and will continue his throwing progression from there. He’s going to begin the season on the injured list though, with a goal of returning before the end of April. Fantasy managers who want to gamble on him on draft day should plan to be without the left-hander for the first five or six weeks of the season at a minimum.

Roberts told reporters that the 33-year-old southpaw is making progress in his throwing progression, there’s just not enough time left in the calendar for him to fully ramp up before the start of the regular season. Expect the Dodgers to continue to take a cautious approach here, as their only concern is that Snell is healthy and ready to go in October.

Roberts added that Los Angeles’ season opener in late March wasn’t necessarily their target date for Snell to join the club’s rotation. The 33-year-old veteran southpaw was limited to just 11 regular-season starts last year due to persistent shoulder issues, which is why the Dodgers are slow-playing his ramp-up process this spring. The general expectation is that Snell will be ready to make his season debut at some point in the early stages of the year, but he’s behind the rest of the club’s starters in camp right now. There should be some additional clarity regarding his timeline once he progresses to facing hitters again. He’s a risky early-round selection in fantasy drafts this spring given his checkered injury history but he’s been excellent when he’s healthy enough to take the mound.

It’s part of Snell’s plan to throw more innings this season after being limited to 11 regular-season starts last year. He’s still aiming to be a part of the Opening Day rotation, but any bit of trouble this spring will probably put him on the IL initially. “He’s playing catch,” manager Dave Roberts said. “He’s throwing. Once he gets off the mound, throws a pen, faces some hitters, we’ll know more. But obviously he’s not there right now.”

“You want to ramp up, but I gotta take my time and get healthy,” Snell told the California Post’s Jack Harris. He said the plan is still for him to be ready for Opening Day, but he’s also not going to take any chances this spring. None of this seems like great news, but it’s not like anyone is penciling in Snell for 180 innings anyway; he’s topped 130 just twice in the majors. If he’s at his best for 130 innings this year, it’ll probably be enough for him to justify his draft day price tag. Should Snell be unavailable initially, it’d probably lock up rotation spots for Emmet Sheehan and Roki Sasaki in L.A. and open the door for Justin Wrobleski, Ben Casparius or maybe River Ryan to open up as the sixth starter.

Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes said during an interview with MLB Network shortly afterwards that Roki Sasaki will return to the rotation mix once spring training rolls around after an impressive closer cameo during the postseason. Roberts hinted the Dodgers will get “creative” early in the season with their pitching staff — code for something that looks and behaves like a six-man rotation without actually calling it one — as they look to preserve Ohtani, Yamamoto, Snell and Glasnow for the long haul. Nearly every contender has adopted some version of this strategy by now, and it’s the logical path for Los Angeles. We expect Emmet Sheehan to grab a spot with Sasaki also factoring into the mix during the early portion of the year.

It’s official. Ohtani will take the ball on just three days’ rest opposite future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer for a Game 7 showdown at Rogers Centre to decide an electric Fall Classic. The 31-year-old two-way superstar was always expected to factor into Los Angeles’ pitching plan for the winner-take-all contest, but it makes the most sense from a routine standpoint to have him start before handing things over to the bullpen. Yoshinobu Yamamoto is the lone Dodgers starter unlikely to pitch barring an emergency, while Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow — who needed just three pitches to record the save in Game 6 — will both be available in relief.

Snell struck out seven and walked four. The first two runs came on the first three pitches, as he gave up a leadoff-homer to Davis Schneider and a solo tank to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. He settled down nicely, but another run was scored after a horrendous defensive play by Teoscar Hernandez turned a single into a triple and a sac fly scored Daulton Varsho. The last two runs were scored after he exited the game, but it’s another disappointing World Series start from a pitcher who was so dominant in helping Los Angeles reach the Fall Classic. He’ll likely be a bullpen option for Game 7, if the series gets there.

Snell allowed his first homer in 190 batters when he gave up a two-run homer to Daulton Varsho. The left-hander had been dominant in his previous three starts in the postseason, but the left-hander struggled to locate; particularly with his change. Three of the runs came in the sixth, as Snell loaded the bases and Emmet Sheehan was entirely ineffective taking over for the 32-year-old. Assuming the series makes it to five games, Snell will be back on the bump against Toronto in Los Angeles for that start Wednesday.