The Los Angeles Dodgers are finally getting their full rotation back, and the timing couldn't be better for baseball's deepest pitching staff. Left-hander Blake Snell is set to make his season debut this Saturday, May 9th, after missing the start of the year with shoulder discomfort.
Snell has been working his way back through a careful rehabilitation program, making two starts with the Single-A Ontario Tower Buzzers and one outing for the Triple-A Oklahoma City Comets. His return adds another elite arm to what is already one of MLB's most formidable rotations.
The timing is particularly special: Snell will take the mound on his own bobblehead night, a fitting welcome-back celebration for the two-time Cy Young winner. Manager Dave Roberts confirmed that Snell will slot into the rotation in place of Roki Sasaki, who was originally scheduled to pitch against the Braves.
Here's how the Dodgers' rotation shapes up for the upcoming series: Emmet Sheehan gets the ball on Friday, Snell makes his highly anticipated return on Saturday, and Justin Wrobleski pitches on Sunday. Then, for Monday's series opener against the San Francisco Giants, Sasaki takes the mound.
The rotation stays stacked after that: Yoshinobu Yamamoto is likely to pitch Tuesday, Shohei Ohtani takes over Wednesday, and all eyes turn to Thursday when Tyler Glasnow is penciled in to start—if he's healthy.
Glasnow left his last outing after just one inning due to back spasms, though his latest examination showed no structural damage. The Dodgers are taking a cautious approach, letting Glasnow assess his own condition before deciding on Thursday's start. As a safety net, the team has minor league pitcher Paul Gervase on the 40-man roster ready to step in if needed.
Glasnow himself downplayed the injury, saying, "It kind of just gives out. I've gotten it since high school. Being tall, I guess. I get it a couple times a year. Just a warm-up pitch and it gave out."
With Snellzilla back in action and the full rotation finally coming together, the Dodgers are poised to make a serious statement as they head into a critical stretch of the season.