Dodgers routed by Cardinals as Eric Lauer's elbow injury shakes up rotation
The Los Angeles Dodgers lost 13-8 at home to the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday, and starter Eric Lauer landed on the injured list afterward with elbow inflammation. The team activated reliever Blake Treinen and is still sorting out its rotation plans.
Lopsided loss at home
The Los Angeles Dodgers (82-56) fell 13-8 to the St. Louis Cardinals at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday, September 1, according to the Los Angeles Times. St. Louis entered the day 4½ games out of the final NL wild-card spot.
The game turned on a rough outing from left-hander Eric Lauer, who allowed seven runs (eight hits, including two home runs) over three innings, including a five-run third inning. Lauer had only recently returned to the rotation after right-hander Roki Sasaki went on the injured list with a blister on his finger.
The Dodgers fought back with a bases-loaded double from Mookie Betts that was aided by a Cardinals defensive mishap — right fielder Jordan Walker and second baseman José Fermín collided going after the same fly ball, letting it drop. Catcher Will Smith, activated from the IL earlier that day, later drove in two runs, including one during a three-run ninth-inning rally, but it wasn't enough. By the ninth inning, the score had grown so lopsided that position player Kiké Hernández took the mound to close out the game.
Lauer to the IL, Treinen activated
On Wednesday, the club announced Lauer had been placed on the 15-day injured list with elbow inflammation, per MLB Trade Rumors. Veteran reliever Blake Treinen was reinstated from the 60-day IL to take his roster spot after a strong rehab stint — seven scoreless outings at the minor-league level, striking out eight of 25 batters faced. To open a 40-man roster spot, the Dodgers transferred reliever Will Klein from the 15-day to the 60-day IL; Klein has been diagnosed with bone chips in his elbow and is done for the regular season, though he could still be available for the postseason.
Justin Wrobleski also returned from a brief IL stint on Tuesday but has been shifted to the bullpen to prepare for a likely postseason relief role; per MLB Trade Rumors, his first outing back wasn't sharp, allowing three runs over two innings.
Looking ahead
Ahead of this weekend's series against the Washington Nationals, the Dodgers plan to call up a sixth starter. True Blue LA reports Emmet Sheehan, who has pitched three straight strong starts for Triple-A Oklahoma City, is considered the top candidate. Pitcher Gavin Stone is also approaching a Friday deadline to be added back to the 40-man roster. There's still no timetable for Shohei Ohtani's next pitching appearance, which won't happen before Sunday at the earliest.
On Wednesday, Yoshinobu Yamamoto takes the mound against the Cardinals; he has not allowed a run against St. Louis in 11 innings across his two prior starts against them this season.
