The Dodgers may be staring at a painful turn in the road with breakout reliever Brock Klein.
What looked at first like a routine injured-list stint for right elbow discomfort has turned into something far more serious. Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reported that an MRI revealed bone chips in Klein’s elbow, and the right-hander could now be headed for surgery.
"The Dodgers are deciding next steps after an MRI showed bone chips in his elbow, league sources told The Athletic," Ardaya wrote.
"Those sources spoke on the condition of anonymity so they could speak candidly about the fluid nature of the Dodgers’ plans. If Klein needs surgery, it would put his season in jeopardy."
That’s a brutal development for a pitcher who had been a high-leverage weapon for Los Angeles before things went sideways this past month. Klein had been rolling for much of the season, posting a 2.51 ERA heading into July and a 1.88 mark heading into June.
Then came the rough stretch. Before landing on the IL, he gave up 10 runs, eight earned, over his last five outings, covering six innings. The struggles now make more sense in light of the elbow issue.
For the season, Klein has worked in 36 appearances, logging 41.2 innings with a 3.67 ERA, 49 strikeouts and a 3-4 record. He’s also shown up near the top of the league in several important areas, sitting in the 92nd percentile in fastball velocity, the 98th percentile in barrel rate and the 96th percentile in ground-ball rate.
Bone chips in a pitcher’s elbow are no small matter. They often require surgery to restore full range of motion and relieve pain, and while the procedure would be less severe than surgery for a torn Ulnar Collateral Ligament, it would still almost certainly knock Klein out for the rest of the 2026 season.
The timing is especially tough because Klein’s 36 appearances and 42.1 innings in 2026 are both career highs at the major league level.
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