Wood set to come off DL for Giants series
Lefty set to start Tuesday; Jansen will be reevaluated Aug. 20
DENVER -- Alex Wood will come off the 10-day disabled list and start on Tuesday in the second game of the Dodgers' series against the Giants in Los Angeles, manager Dave Roberts said on Saturday.
The left-hander went on the DL on Aug. 4 with left adductor tendinitis after experiencing cramping the day before, during his start against the Astros. Wood dealt with tendinitis and hamstring problems earlier in the season but pitched through them to a 3.58 ERA and 7-6 record over 22 starts.
The setup for the rest of the rotation has not been decided. Roberts said Thomas Stripling and Kenta Maeda are in the mix, as well as Hyun-Jin Ryu, who has been on rehab assignment in Double-A and Triple-A since the beginning of August.
Ryu was put on the 10-day DL with a left groin strain on May 3, but the Dodgers transferred him to the 60-day DL a month later. Roberts said Ryu will not make another rehab start, but the manager would not confirm when the lefty will rejoin the Dodgers' rotation.
"He's got to slot in somewhere," Roberts said.
Injury update: Jansen
As the Dodgers struggle to solidify their rotation, their relievers are also being forced into new roles as they face pressure from Kenley Jansen's absence. The closer is on the DL with an irregular heartbeat.
On Saturday, Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said Jansen will have a follow-up appointment with his cardiologist in Los Angeles on Aug. 20. While Friedman is encouraged by Jansen's mindset, he did say the club is prepared for Jansen to miss an extended period of time.
"It could be anywhere from [after the Aug. 20 appointment] until sometime in September," Friedman said. "The quality of life and his health is most important."
Friedman said he is encouraged by what the cardiologists are relaying to the club and he thinks Jansen will be able to resume baseball activities before Aug. 20 to keep in shape. He did not say what medication Jansen has been prescribed or whether he will require a surgery similar to one Jansen had in 2012.
"Obviously this is very different than anything else," Friedman said, "and we're very reliant on the cardiologists and them telling us when and how to progress."
Grandal gets a breather
Dodgers catcher Yasmani Grandal was in the initial lineup for Saturday's game against the Rockies, but an hour later, he was removed for backup catcher Austin Barnes. Roberts said it was nothing more than Grandal has played three days in a row and two in a row in Denver's thin air.
"Had him in there, he wanted to be in there, but just kind of seeing him today, I just felt it was best to take it off his hands and keep him available off the bench and get a fresh Austin Barnes in there," Roberts said. "My instinct was to retract the original lineup. He'll be in there tomorrow."
Roberts said he was hoping to start Grandal on Saturday and Barnes on Sunday for the series finale, based on how the rotation stacked up.
"There was something to [Grandal] catching Walker [Buehler, Saturday's starter] and they had a good synergy going and Rich [Hill, Sunday's starter] with [Barnes], so we were kind of pushing it a little bit," Roberts said. "But we feel good about this, too."