While the Dodgers have been blessed with relatively good, overall health so far this spring, there are a handful of issues among a few players that continue to linger.
The most severe injury belongs to outfielder Joc Pederson. The 27-year-old lefty hitter has been dealing with a problem in his side, still preventing him from picking up a bat.
News out of camp on Wednesday indicated the injury might be worse than originally indicated.
For a moment during the winter, it looked as if both Pederson and righty pitcher Ross Stripling would be traded to the Angels, but for a multitude of speculated reasons, the deal eventually fell through.
If Pederson finds himself healthy come Opening Day, he might be in a platoon scenario with the right-handed hitting A.J. Pollock. Nevertheless, with Matt Beaty, Enrique Hernandez and Chris Taylor lurking about the 26-man roster, there is not any hurry to rush Pederson back into action, even if it means he would not be available for the regular season opener against the Giants exactly one month from Wednesday.
Similarly, righty pitching prospect Dustin May has been experiencing an issue in his side and has been shut down temporarily. According to Bill Plunkett of the OC Register, May has not thrown a ball since the opening of spring camp.
Team management has already stated that May will be groomed as a starter for the early part of the season, so it remains logical to assume that he’ll begin the year at Triple-A Oklahoma City, considering the surplus of available starters at the big league level. That being the case, there’s no reason to expedite May’s recovery.
Connor Joe, who the Dodgers brought back to the organization after he spent last season in the San Francisco system, left camp to attend to personal issues. The 27-year-old outfielder made his MLB debut for the Giants last year, eventually logging 15 big league AB over eight games early last spring.
According to injury reports from a few outlets, lefty reliever Scott Alexander is listed as having a problem with his hand, but nothing concrete has yet to be mentioned to the media. Alexander has not thrown a big league pitch since June 5 of last year.
On a positive note, veteran right-hander Jimmy Nelson seems to be pitching well after experiencing soreness in his back and groin at the onset of camp. He has thrown several bullpens since last Thursday and appears to be on track for inclusion on the Opening Day roster.
Nelson remains a longshot for the starting rotation, but there’s a good chance he begins the year in the bullpen, should he stay healthy throughout the spring.
Think Blue Planning Committee 
As usual, injuries tend to help straighten out spring logjams. We have too many outfielders but now Joc is injured. We have too many relievers but now Alexander is apparently injured. We have too many starters but now May is injured. If these three all start the season on the DL it won’t be a disaster and by the time they’re ready someone else will probably be down for a while.
I hope it’s nothing serious with Connor Joe. “Out indefinitely” sounds kind of ominous and although it’s doubtful that he’ll have a future on the Dodger MLB roster, I hope this doesn’t turn into another Toles story.
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Kyle Glaser on Zach McKinstry
He’s the latest good contact hitter the Dodgers unlocked power in, a lot of people in the organization think he’s the next Matt Beaty… The Dodgers internally consider him average to above at SS, 2B and 3B. He projects to bounce around more as a utilityman than be set at one position.
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I am impressed with Cody Thomas. He hit his second spring homer today and it was a monster. They also got triples from McKinstry and Raley. Jansen struck out the side in his inning. Looking good. Kersh pitching tomorrow.
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I was just coming in to say the same thing Bear. Cody Thomas is impressive. 6’4” (maybe taller) 215 pounds and just looks the part. He’s older (25) but played college ball. I believe he just needs more at bats.
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Same here. Kid has a lot of composure up at the plate. His first homer was an opposite field shot.
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I really like both Thomas and Peters’ approach to baseball. Both really hard working, athletic guys with excellent power. That said, I don’t expect either of them to have an MLB career worth talking about in the long run. I very much hope I’m wrong, but I don’t think either of them will solve their swing and miss problems at the major league level.
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The great thing about baseball is that it is so unpredictable. 7 years ago, nobody knew who the hell Justin Turner was. He had been very pedestrian with both the Mets and the Orioles, and he finally figured it out. So, you never can tell with these kids. They both have high K totals. But who knows, they may one day soon see the light.
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They don’t even need to hit .240 to OPS .800. Thomas only had a .308 OBP at AA last year. Not good. He’s older than Bellinger. Peters had a combined .358 OBP at AA-AAA. I think you’re right Jefe. Thomas has a ways to go. He may be one of those guys that just looks good in uniform. Those shots were impressive though.
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Really excited to see what Kersh’s fastball tops out at tomorrow. Is he throwing any change ups? Those of you that are watching the game let us know. Thx
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I thought Gonsolin was going tomorrow and Kershaw/Wood on Friday. Has that been changed?
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Gonsolin is pitching tomorrow and Kersh is starting Friday’s game.
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Good morning all. Taylor is back in the lineup today against the Indians. He has been out with a biceps issue. Nelson was shut down with groin and back pain. No time table for his return. Joc not ready to play games yet either. Still waiting to see Price pitch. He has been throwing his BP sessions, so he is supposedly healthy. Sale will open the season on the IL. Gore gets another chance to totally embarrass himself as a hitter today since he is getting a start in CF against the tribe. Astros hitters have been hit 7 times in 5 games. Is it opening day yet??????
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Good morning Bear. As I said above, injuries tend to straighten out ST logjams. With Nelson shut down again I think it’s safe to say that both he and May will begin the year on the IL. Graterol is due for some mound activity in the next couple of days so we’ll see how he gets through that. Slowly but surely there are beginning to be some openings for guys who weren’t expected to be on the roster but are having good springs. Caleb Ferguson has looked good, although he was probably more likely to be on the roster than not in any case. Santana has impressed and if enough guys fall by the wayside, I suppose there is a slight chance he opens the year on the major league roster. Still a month left so anything could happen.
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Got that right. Yadier Alvarez might be making his mound debut today. He is trying to pitch his way off of the restricted list. I have been impressed with Santana, but the real eye opener has been Jansen. He has been nasty. Kasowski has impressed me too.
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You might even be safe in saying Joc may open the year on the IL also. There is no timetable on his return to action. He is not even swinging a bat yet.
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You’re right, almost no way Joc opens the season on the active roster and that also makes it very hard to trade him if AF had some thought of doing that. I think he’s still a good candidate to be traded before the deadline though. Kenley has looked really fantastic. Hopefully he keeps it up and so does Kelly. Looking forward to seeing Graterol and Treinen. With regard to Alvarez, I’ve been really down on him the last couple of years and would have gotten rid of him a long time ago, but for some weird reason, I’m now rooting for him after reading his comments. Assuming they weren’t written by a political operative I’m going to believe him until he shows me it was all just a bunch of words.
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Welp, it looks like Jimmy Nelson has “pulled a groin” again.
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Well Alvarez did not pitch today. Maybe he gets a shot tomorrow. Price and Urias will both make their spring debut on Monday. Kike hit his second homer of the spring, a 3 run shot in the first. Keibert Ruiz for his first action of the spring going 0-1. Gore did manage to get a walk. That guy is totally worthless. White actually hit a ball hard today. Baez looked good too. Gonsolin went 2 scoreless.
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Tom Verducci article about game 5 at Houston in 17. Kersh threw 51 sliders and curves and got ZERO swings and misses. Look at Springer s at bats in game 1. He was clueless! Kersh was robbed!
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This is for you Bear. Tyler White ends the third with a diving stop at first base, saving a run. Then starts the top of the fourth with a long double. Friedman has just announced he will be the starting first baseman this year and Muncy will be traded. I know you’re the President of the Tyler White fan club. Congratulations. 🙂
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You are clearly NUTS> That is the first ball White has hit hard since Moby Dick was a minnow.
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And we’re gonna sign him instead of Mookie next year to that 400 mil contract!
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Interesting game, and a typical spring tilt. They jump out to a lead and the young pitchers almost blew it. Gonsolin was sharp. Kike powdered that homer. And over all the regulars looked pretty good. I still think Gore is a waste.
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