Dodgers Notes: Snell & Glasnow Bullpen, Sheehan’s Latest Rehab Appearance, and More Pitching Updates

LOS ANGELES, CA— It is no secret that injuries have decimated the Los Angeles Dodgers’ pitching staff this season.

Before the halfway mark of the 2025 season, the Dodgers have placed a combined thirty pitchers on the injured list at some point this season, the most in Major League Baseball.

As of June 12th, the team has also deployed fourteen different starting pitchers, a figure that leads all of baseball and is expected to rise further once multiple players return from the injured list.

Despite all this, the Dodgers still sit atop the National League West standings, albeit just one game above the San Francisco Giants, who have surpassed all expectations as we enter mid-June.

Still, the Dodgers are well on their way to breaking their own record of pitchers on the IL, a mark that set a Major League-high last season of forty in 2024 but are hopefully trending in the right direction after having multiple positive updates this week.

Blake Snell Throws First Bullpen Session Since April

Arguably, the prized free agent signing of the offseason for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Blake Snell, had a massive step forward in his recovery from left shoulder discomfort this week in San Diego.

Snell, 32, inked a massive 5-year, $182 million contract with the Dodgers this winter; however, the two-time Cy Young Award winner has only made two starts this season after landing on the 15-day injured list in April.

Since then, it has been an uphill battle for Snell to get back to the mound for Los Angeles, having multiple setbacks with many fans assuming the worst with the left-hander.

However, after meeting with team doctors last month, Snell was finally cleared to resume his throwing program, and according to him, he’s been pain-free for about two weeks.

After Snell reached 120 feet in his throwing program, the next step was a bullpen session, which was slated to begin at his old stomping grounds in Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres.

On Tuesday, Snell threw his first bullpen session since mid-April, tossing fifteen fastballs at about seventy percent intensity. However, the biggest win is that Snell felt zero discomfort, a feeling he had not felt since putting on a Dodger uniform this spring.

“Every time I touched the baseball, the second I threw it, I could feel it,” Snell said of the shoulder. “If it wasn’t the front, it was the back. If it wasn’t the back or the front, it was the side. It was just weird. I never felt that, even in my offseason. So I was just real confused. But now, very confident, feel great.”

Snell is still likely weeks away as the lefty will need a few more bullpen sessions, live at-bats, and a likely extensive minor league rehab assessment, which lines him up for a post-All-Star break return, but a healthy Blake Snell in the second half of the season is a nice consolation prize for Los Angeles as they look to bolster their rotation before October.

Tyler Glasnow‘s Third Bullpen Session a Success; Next Steps Undecided

Like Snell, Dodgers right-handed starter Tyler Glasnow also threw a bullpen session on Tuesday in Los Angeles, the third session since being placed on the 15-day injured list in May.

Glasnow’s time on the injured list has been a massive storyline for the Dodgers, and the righty has continued to battle injury concerns and criticism from the media and fans alike.

It all came to a boil earlier in the month when Roberts and Snell contradicted each other regarding the right-hander’s last bullpen session, which ultimately ended with Glasnow reverting just to flat-ground play.

General body soreness was the terminology used by Dave Roberts, and an unclear plan for the next steps was evident; however, according to Glasnow, it was no big deal.

The whole situation is neither here nor there as Glasnow threw off the mound again with encouraging results, sitting between 95-96 MPH, and has remained pain-free, according to Dodgers pitching coach Mark Prior.

Despite this, the Dodgers do not know the next steps for Glasnow at the moment, but like Snell, due to the time missed on the injured list, he’ll need to be built back up and require a minor-league rehab assignment.

Glasnow was placed on the 60-day injured list a few weeks back with a retroactive date of April 27th, meaning the earliest he can return is June 26th, but the righty is likely a post-All-Star break addition.

Did Emmet Sheehan Make His Final Rehab Appearance?

Possibly the most interesting thing to happen on the Dodgers’ Thursday off-day as they return to Los Angeles was the possible last rehab start from young right-hander Emmet Sheehan.

Sheehan continued his minor league rehab assignment earlier tonight with the Triple-A OKC Comets, and per Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, depending on how this start goes, there could be a conversation about Sheehan’s activation off the 60-day injured list.

However, it was not the best night for Sheehan, as the righty was tagged with four earned runs, including two home runs, in 3.1 innings of work against the Albuquerque Isotopes.

The positives for Sheehan tonight were that his velocity was on par with where he has been sitting, which was the mid-90s, and that he collected seven more punchouts, pushing his minor league total to twenty-one across four starts.

The Dodgers, who are desperate for rotation help after the loss of Tony Gonsolin, are looking for alternatives as potential replacements, as Bobby Miller, Landon Knack, and Justin Wrobleksi have not taken advantage of their opportunities.

Sheehan, 25, missed the entire 2024 Major League Baseball season recovering from season-ending Tommy John surgery, a UCL injury that sidelined him all of spring training.

Now, after four minor league rehab starts, the Dodgers will be tasked with the decision to activate the righty (they’ll need to clear another 40-man roster spot) or let Sheehan get one more tune-up before a late June activation.

Around the Mound

There have been few to no updates on Japanese rookie right-hander Roki Sasaki since his placement on the 15-day injured list in May.

The last reported update was that the righty was cleared to resume his throwing program, but only with very light catch play and no timetable for the next steps.

Pitching coach Mark Prior stated that Sasaki is not feeling pain, “but hasn’t gotten to the point where he can put enough intensity to push forward in his progression.”

Before Sasaki’s IL placement, the Dodgers suggested that many of his below-league-average metrics were attributed to mechanics, so with the injury, the team is taking their time with the 23-year-old phenom.

Edgardo Henriquez, the Dodgers’ young flamethrowing bullpen arm, appeared in his fifth rehab game for the Triple-A OKC Comets on June 10th, tossing twenty-seven pitches (fifteen for strikes) and allowing five runs in his lone inning of work.

Overall, it has not been the best for Henriquez, as the righty has posted a 15.43 ERA in 4.2 innings of work. However, with his activation imminent, expect Henriquez to be optioned back to the minor leagues.

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