Dodgers Notes: Kyle Hurt’s Rehab Assignment, Sheehan’s Start Skipped, Injury Updates & September Roster Expansion

Kyle Hurt Will Start Rehab Assignment in OKC

One name that has been absent from the Dodgers’ bullpen this season is right-handed relief pitcher Kyle Hurt, who has been rehabbing his right elbow after undergoing season-ending Tommy John surgery in 2024.

Hurt, 27, has been ramping up his throwing program over the summer and was most recently seen at Dodger Stadium on Saturday, where the right-hander threw two simulated innings.

“It’s really exciting. It’s been a very long 13 months, and I’m just really happy to be back to doing what I was doing. Really excited to move forward,” Hurt said.

Hurt started the season off on the Dodgers’ 15-day injured list before being transferred to the 60-day IL in early April. Over the spring and summer months, Hurt has been at the Dodgers complex in Arizona, including a few appearances in some minor league games in the Arizona League.

Now, he’ll begin a short minor league rehab assignment with the Triple-A OKC Comets next Tuesday as Hurt eyes a return to the Dodgers this season.

“My goal was always to pitch this year, but it’s whatever the team needs,” Hurt said. “I just want to be an option. That was my goal.”

Over the past two seasons, Hurt has gone 0-1 with a 1.04 ERA and 1.04 WHIP over four games, including one start. The Dodgers selected him from the University of Southern California as a starting pitcher, but he may continue to contribute to the team primarily as a reliever.

Dodgers to Skip Sheehan’s Turn in Rotation this Week

The Los Angeles Dodgers recently finished a run of thirteen games in thirteen days, followed by a day off last Thursday, which required them to depend heavily on their pitching depth.

Unlike earlier this summer, the Dodgers’ pitching staff, even without the likes of Dustin May and Tony Gonsolin, has been fortified by the returns of Clayton Kershaw, Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell, and two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani.

But now, with the team entering the final month of the season, having rosters expanded on September 1st and having two off days in a span of five days, the Dodgers plan on skipping young right-hander Emmet Sheehan’s turn in the rotation.

Due to the additional days, manager Dave Roberts stated that the Dodgers are skipping Emmet Sheehan’s turn in the rotation. For now, Sheehan will be available to pitch out of the bullpen.

“He’ll be available [Sunday] at some point if we want to use him,” Roberts said. “We haven’t figured out when we’re going to pitch him next. But yeah, Kersh is going to go on Tuesday, and Shohei will go on Wednesday.”

Sheehan is coming off his best performance of the season, having pitched seven shutout innings against the Cincinnati Reds on Monday. He achieved a season-high of ten strikeouts and issued only one walk.

Since Sheehan is in his first year after Tommy John surgery, the Dodgers are cautious about overusing him. He has pitched forty-eight innings this season, nearing his career high of 60.1.

It also provides the Dodgers with another opportunity to see Sheehan in a bullpen role, which could be his role in the postseason if the rotation becomes full.

Injury Updates: Muncy, Kim, Call, Freeman & More

As the calendar gets closer to turning to September, the Dodgers’ roster is starting to get fully healthy, and it couldn’t come at a more dire time with the team barely holding on to the lead in the National League West.

With rosters officially expanding tomorrow, the Dodgers’ 26-man roster will expand to 28, allowing for one additional pitcher and position player.

However, even after that, Los Angeles is expected to activate more players by mid-September, including Max Muncy and Tommy Edman.

Freddie Freeman

Freeman was absent from the lineup on Wednesday because of a neck stinger that extended from his neck into his right shoulder. He rejoined the lineup on Friday, but the Dodgers will continue monitoring his condition.

“From what I understand, he feels a lot better,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “There’s still some kind of lingering effects, but nothing compromising. It is something that we’ll keep an eye on day-to-day, but I feel confident that he can get through it and won’t have any setbacks.”

Freeman returned to the Dodgers lineup on Friday and is likely to play in Sunday’s series finale versus the Arizona Diamondbacks as the team tries to avoid a series sweep.

Also, having an off-day on Monday could prove beneficial to Freeman and others on the roster as they head East for their last road trip on that coast this season in Pittsburgh and Baltimore.

Tommy Edman

For much of the 2025 season, the Dodgers have been without 2024 NLCS MVP Tommy Edman, who has been plagued by a lingering right ankle injury that has been a problem since last season, even before his trade to Los Angeles.

However, over the last several days, Edman has begun ramping up all baseball activities, including running, defense, and finally taking live batting practice at Dodger Stadium on Saturday.

“I thought fine,” Roberts said about how Edman fared. “It’s good to get some guys here to throw. I thought right-handed was better than left-handed, but not kind of reading too much into either right now.

Edman had limited mobility issues last week, but he appears to have overcome that obstacle and now has no restrictions.

“I think he’s not restricted with anything,” Roberts noted. “I think it’s just more of the workload, as far as making sure that when you get some fatigue running around, that we don’t go backwards.

“So I think that a couple days ago, maybe three days ago, he went really hard, and then the next day he was a little bit sore. So that’s saying that you’re just not quite there yet. But the live at-bats, and hopefully next week we can send him out on a rehab assignment. That’d be great.”

Edman is still eying an early September return and will go out on a minor league rehab assignment before the minor league season is over.

When he returns, the Dodgers are hopeful he can play meaningful innings in center field, as a way to fortify their troubled outfield defense this season.

Max Muncy

After missing all of July due to a severe bone bruise, Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy was placed back on the injured list just two weeks later with a Grade One right oblique injury, which caused him issues last season.

While the injury was not as severe as the right oblique that forced Muncy to miss nearly three months last summer, it was considered enough to land him back on the 10-day IL.

However, now Muncy has started to ramp up baseball activities, including swinging and facing live pitching, with the next step being a short minor league rehab assignment.

However, that was all canceled after the left-handed slugger had been dealing with an illness this week.

“Max had a little kind of something with congestion or not feeling good, chest cold, something like that,” Roberts said. “So we sent him home. He’s going to get on some velo on Sunday on the field. “And then hopefully we can get Max out on rehab next week as well. So if we could get he and Tommy out, that’d be great.”

The hope was that Muncy would return when the Dodgers start their road trip on Thursday, but that has now been postponed.

“Pushes it back a little bit,” Roberts said. “But I’m still holding out hope that Baltimore is still alive, but we’ll see.”

Alex Call

Like Freeman, Alex Call was held out of the Game Three lineup versus the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday after being removed from Tuesday’s game early.

Call was dealing with a Sacroiliac issue affecting his lower back since Tuesday and went 1-for-4 during his return on Saturday night during the Dodgers’ 6-1 loss to the Dbacks.

Brock Stewart

The Dodgers’ top trade deadline acquisition, right-handed pitcher Brock Stewart, has only appeared in a handful of games so far in his Dodgers reunion after landing on the 15-day injured list with right shoulder discomfort.

After being placed on the injured list, Stewart received a cortisone shot and PRP injections to subdue the shoulder pain, hoping a few days off from throwing would do the trick and eye a September return to the Dodgers bullpen.

The 33-year-old began playing catch last week but still experienced discomfort, leading to another injection.

“I’m not sure when he’s going to start his throwing program, but we’re still hopeful that at some point time in September, we’ll get him back, but no real update,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said.

“He was playing catch, and then it just didn’t respond the right way,” Roberts explained of Stewart needing additional injections.

Although Stewart’s absence has been noticeable, the team was glad to welcome back Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates from the injured list. Additionally, Michael Kopech and Roki Sasaki will rejoin the team as rosters expand in September.

September Roster Expansions

While the Dodgers have the day off tomorrow on Labor Day as they travel back to the East Coast for a six-game road trip, rosters across Major League Baseball will officially expand from twenty-six to twenty-eight.

The Dodgers plan to utilize both additional roster spots on rehabbing players: right-handed pitcher Michael Kopech and utilityman Hyeseong Kim.

Both players have been on a minor league rehab assignment in August.

Kim so far is 9-for-30 with eleven total bases and two RBI, all while playing multiple positions across the field, including left, where it’s expected he’ll get some action when activated.

Kopech has struggled with his command, but the velocity and strike rate have been there, which gives the Dodgers coaching staff confidence that he’ll join the team playing major league games in September.

Kopech will have to be added back to the 40-man roster, necessitating a corresponding move.

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