Blake Snell has loose bodies in elbow, expected to miss a while

LOS ANGELES, CA - MAY 9, 2026: Dodgers starting pitcher Blake Snell sits in the dugout after giving up four runs to the Atlanta Braves in the second inning at Dodger Stadium on May 9, 2026 in Los Angeles, CA. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) The Dodgers starting rotation was the most stable part of their team through the first quarter of the season, but the last week and a half has put a dent in the depth and figures to create some tests over at least the next few weeks. Blake Snell was placed on the injured list on Friday with loose bodies in his left elbow, which means he’ll be on the shelf for quite a while.

“We feel confident he’ll be back with us this year,” manager Dave Roberts told reporters before Friday’s game in Anaheim , from which Snell was scratched from his scheduled start. That’s not what you want to hear about any player or pitcher, but it’s where the Dodgers are at. Dodgers closer Edwin Díaz had arthroscopic surgery on April 22 to remove loose bodies from his elbow and is expected to miss three months .

Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal had surgery to remove loose bodies as well on May 6 , and his return timetable is measured in months, not weeks. The outcome for Snell is still to be determined, but surgery is the most likely per Maddie Lee of the Los Angeles Times . That decision will come in the next week, per Jack Harris of the California Post , who noted such a procedure would sideline Snell until July or August.

Tyler Glasnow is also on the injured list with back spasms . He’s technically eligible to return next Friday, but Roberts said earlier this week that Glasnow won’t be ready by then, and is only just now throwing off flat ground. So for now, the Dodgers rotation is Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, Emmet Sheehan, Justin Wrobleski, and Roki Sasaki.