The Dodgers head into Saturday with championship aspirations intact, but the road to the postseason has been anything but smooth. Even with 100 wins in the regular season, Los Angeles spent the stretch run looking battered, and the injury list kept growing right down to the finish.
The latest scare came with Blake Treinen, who hurt his shoulder while warming up with two games left in the regular season. After only seven games back on the mound following a nearly three-month stint on the injured list, the top reliever is now done for the year.
That made Blake Snell’s situation even more nerve-racking. About 10 days before the postseason opener, the two-time Cy Young winner left his start after just one inning because of groin discomfort. He was pitching on four days’ rest, and the quick exit sent him straight from the mound to the dugout and then back to the clubhouse.
Nine days later, Snell was back out there. This time, he logged four innings, threw 77 pitches, gave up one earned run and struck out three. It wasn’t his sharpest outing, but the bigger issue was whether his body held up - and by Snell’s own account, it did.
“Really encouraged by it, and just happy to get my legs underneath me and get going and completely move past the groin. I mean, it felt great today, and the velo was good,” Snell said. “I’ve got to figure my body out a little more, but I got a week to do so, and I’m really looking forward to that.”
Snell’s 2026 season has already been a stop-and-start ride. He didn’t make his debut until early May because shoulder fatigue landed him on the injured list in March.
Then, after allowing four earned runs in three innings in his first outing, he went right back on the IL. That absence lasted more than three months, during which he underwent a procedure to remove loose bodies in his elbow.
The pattern feels familiar for the Dodgers. In 2025, Snell made his first two starts in a Dodgers uniform before missing four months with shoulder inflammation.
He eventually came back and posted a 2.41 ERA the rest of the regular season, then followed with a 3.18 ERA in the postseason. His October run included a 10-strikeout, one-hit gem to start the NLCS.
Los Angeles is hoping for that version of Snell again this month. He is expected to start Game 3 of the NLDS, behind Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tarik Skubal.
In Other News...
Dodgers Just Reopened A Big Playoff Door For Hyeseong Kim
Hyeseong Kim is back with the Dodgers at just the right time, as the club re-evaluates its mix ahead of the NLDS. The recall gives Los Angeles another look at an infielder whose defensive range and speed have long stood out to Dave Roberts, especially with roster decisions tightening and every bench spot carrying extra weight in October.
Offense is still the piece that has to catch up if Kim is going to force his way onto the playoff roster, and Roberts has made clear the bat needs to be more consistent. Kim is in the mix with other infield options such as Alex Call, which leaves the Dodgers with a familiar postseason question: how much do they value versatility and athleticism if the production at the plate is still a work in progress? [Read more 🡒]
Dodgers Face Two Crucial NLDS Questions During Bye Week
The Dodgers get to spend their bye week in a familiar place for October, balancing rest with roster decisions while they wait to find out who they will see in the National League Division Series. The pause also gives the club a chance to keep sorting through its options, with young outfielder Josue De Paula and utility player Hyeseong Kim both in the conversation as possible postseason contributors.
Shohei Ohtani and Freddie Freeman add a different kind of intrigue to the week, since both are reportedly feeling physically ready for the postseason. Ohtani is concentrating on his swing, while Freeman is coming back from knee tendonitis, and the Dodgers still have to decide how all of that fits together as they shape the roster and settle the last few questions before the games begin. [Read more 🡒]
Freddie Freeman Enters October With One Huge Dodgers Question
Freddie Freeman heads into October with the kind of late-season uncertainty the Dodgers would rather not have hanging around their lineup, even if the first baseman says the knee pain that bothered him down the stretch is not there right now. The days off before the postseason are giving him a chance to reset mentally, and he has used the time to keep working on his swing with the playoffs in mind.
For a Dodgers team chasing a third straight title, Freemans timing matters as much as his health. He has kept the focus on the immediate series in front of him instead of the larger championship picture, which is the right message for this time of year, but it also leaves the bigger question intact: how close is he to being the version of himself Los Angeles needs once October pressure really starts to build? [Read more 🡒]