Dodgers News: Andrew Heaney Has One More Hurdle Before Return
With the loss of Walker Buehler for an extended period of time thanks to an elbow issue, the Dodgers are left a little thin in the starting rotation. Clayton Kershaw made his return from the Injured List on Saturday afternoon, albeit to mixed results, but Dave Roberts and the front office will need to figure out who’s taking Walker’s spot for the next couple of months.
One pitcher making his way back from injury is left-hander Andrew Heaney. The Heandog made a pair of starts before shoulder inflammation sidelined him in April. Now, after ramping back up in recent Minor League rehab outings, the Dodger manager laid out the path for a Heaney return.
Bill Plunkett of the OC Register has the update.
Roberts said the plan now is for Heaney to make a third rehab start on Tuesday with Double-A Tulsa (because of travel logistics) and stretch out to “five, five-plus (innings) and then we’ll see where we go from there.”
Heaney just fell short of that five inning goal in his last outing on Thursday. The pitcher tossed 4.1 innings without allowing a run with the Oklahoma City Dodgers. He touched 94 MPH on his fastball.
The 31-year-old was signed to a 1-year, $8 million deal this past offseason. After a disappointing campaign in 2021, the veteran was hoping for some of that world famous Dodger magic while working with the coaching staff to jumpstart his career. The results were great in the early goings as Heaney tossed 10.1 scoreless innings over two starts to begin the season.
With Walker Buehler out and Clayton Kershaw just getting his feet wet in his return to the rotation, any little help over these dog days of summer will go a long way.
The Dodgers look to avoid the sweep this afternoon in San Francisco. Julio Urias gets the ball against Carlos Rodon and the Giants. First pitch is set for 1:05 PM PT on SportsNet LA.
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