Justin Wrobleski is headed to the 15-day injured list, but the Dodgers don’t sound alarmed.
Los Angeles placed the left-hander on the IL Sunday because of left forearm inflammation, a diagnosis that can usually send a shiver through any clubhouse. Forearm issues often raise immediate fears about something more serious, but Dodgers manager Dave Roberts made it clear that’s not how the team views this one.
“We’re not concerned. It should be short-lived,” Roberts said. “We have guys that we’re kind of toiling with and their health dealings; a couple guys in the ‘pen, Wrobo.
“Just feeling that given his workload and where he’s at, taking some of the load off his arm, I think it’s smart. And I think with the eight-man ‘pen, we can sort of protect guys more there.
“We just felt, collectively, Justin was the right person to back off the fatigue of the arm. It’s not something he’s ever going to make an excuse for, but I do think that it’s smart for us as an organization to take that load off a little bit.”
Roberts had already signaled Saturday, after Wrobleski’s start, that a roster move was coming to get the bullpen a fresh arm. At that point, he said the Dodgers had “a few guys ailing” and had not settled on who would be moved to the IL.
The move appears to be more about rest and managing workload than a major injury. Wrobleski himself sounded encouraged after his outing Saturday, saying he felt good and was optimistic about where things were headed after working through some issues with his delivery and mechanics.
His stuff was up in that start, and he delivered a solid performance even though one mistake pitch turned into two home runs. That came after a rough stretch in which he allowed four home runs in consecutive games.
Workload is part of the picture, too. Wrobleski has already logged a career-high 126.1 innings, so the Dodgers are expected to handle him carefully from here. He’s also expected to move to the bullpen at some point before the season ends.
Even with the recent bumps, Wrobleski has put together a strong year in his first season as a full-time starter for Los Angeles. He owns a 3.56 ERA and 1.7 WAR in 20 starts, with a 19.4% strikeout rate and a 5.4% walk rate.
He was also named to his first All-Star team after putting up a 2.69 ERA across 100.1 innings in the first half.
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