Dodgers' injury woes have already begun with surprise Blake Snell injury update

The Dodgers used a league-leading 40 pitchers throughout the 2025 season. Only three starters pitched more than 100 innings on the season: Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Clayton Kershaw (the second-oldest guy on the roster), and Dustin May (gone to the Red Sox by the deadline).

Blake Snell made just two starts before he went onto the injured list and missed four months. Tyler Glasnow missed three months and some change from the end of April to the beginning of July. Shohei Ohtani didn't make his first start until mid-June. Roki Sasaki was out from early May to late September.

Par for the course with the Dodgers, really. They also used 40 pitchers in 2024 and Gavin Stone, who ended up undergoing a shoulder surgery in September of that year, was their regular season innings leader at just 140 1/3 innings pitched.

Really, it shouldn't shock anyone that the Dodgers might have injury concerns as early as the end of January, but it never fails to be exasperating. The latest news: Snell may not be ready by Opening Day.

He said on Thursday that his arm was "exhausted" after the World Series, and he's been taking his offseason ramp-up slowly as a result.

Blake Snell, Dodgers uncertain about his readiness by Opening Day after long IL stint in 2025

Snell credited the Dodgers for their patient approach and their emphasis on "health and well-being," and, to be fair, the Dodgers have enough excess pitching talent to not have to scramble if they lose a starter. If Snell ends up totally ruled out for the beginning of the season, even if just for a few weeks, it could give any of Emmet Sheehan, Gavin Stone, or River Ryan a chance to shine.

And the Dodgers really only care about their pitching staff being healthy for October. They can rely on a hodgepodge of starters, openers, and long relievers for a while and trust that their offense will carry games. Snell and Yamamoto are making big bucks not for a random start in August, rather monumental postseason efforts like the ones they pulled off last year.

Really, the Dodgers could afford to let all of their starts to sit out for a while and still have a rotation made up of current or former top prospects: Sheehan, Stone, Ryan, Landon Knack, maybe Kyle Hurt. It's not ideal, nor is it likely (knock on wood), but the Dodgers might now have the best reassurances they've had in years.