The Dodgers have placed a right-hander Blake Treinen on the 15-day injured list, retroactive to September 7. Right-hander Andre Jackson has been called up from Triple-A to take Treinen’s spot on the roster.
Treinen is dealing with tightness in his throwing shoulder, which is an ominous diagnosis considering that Treinen has missed most of the season due to shoulder problems. As Treinen told MLB.com’s Juan Toribio and other reporters last week, he was initially advised to get surgery to repair a partial tear in the front capsule of his shoulder, but instead chose a non-surgical recovery option. This allowed the right-hander to make it back for two more appearances after being activated from the 60-day IL, but Treinen has now been sidelined again.
It’s probably safe to assume that Treinen will again try to make it back without going under the knife, especially with the postseason approaching. Whether he’ll be able to return after a minimum of 15 days is another question, and it is possible Treinen has already thrown his final pitch of the 2022 season. It might be that surgery is inevitable to fully correct his shoulder issues, and such a procedure might now potentially threaten his readiness for at least the start of the 2023 season.
In the midst of his IL stint, Treinen and the Dodgers agreed to a contract extension back in May that guaranteed his 2023 salary at $8MM, which was the total of a club option Los Angeles already held on his services. Another club option for 2024 was also added, worth between $1MM-$7MM depending on Treinen’s health and other benchmarks. With Treinen still plagued with shoulder problems, this extension might already look like a misfire on the Dodgers’ part, especially if he ends up having to miss a portion of the 2023 season. While $8MM isn’t a huge amount to a big-payroll team like LA, that number could certainly impact the luxury tax number for a club that figures to be in tax territory once again next year.
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