Dodgers News: Yasmani Grandal Misses Slated Start

In the shocker of all shockers, a Dodger is being held out of a game with some kind of tweak, soreness, pull or whatever. Yasmani Grandal was supposed to start today, per the Dodgers all week, but was not listed among this evening’s starters.

So, what gives?

ICYMI: Scully Gives His Thoughts on TV Impasse

Well, that nagging forearm isn’t getting better (or hasn’t improved enough), though he doesn’t sound all that concerned. This, via Alanna Rizzo of SportsNetLA:

Grandal said if it were up to him he’d play. Says he respects the #Dodgers decision to be cautious about forearm soreness. Not serious.

— Alanna Rizzo (@alannarizzo) March 24, 2016

Then, Bill Plunkett of the OC Register grabbed an actual quote from the catcher the Dodgers simply cannot lose this year.

#Dodgers Yasmani Grandal: “Nothing major. Nothing that we should be concerned about.” Kept circling back to that in his answers

— Bill Plunkett (@billplunkettocr) March 24, 2016

This doesn’t feel like an Andre Ethier situation, where initial tests didn’t show anything but he was never really able to put weight on the leg that wound up being broken. This doesn’t even feel like the Hyun-Jin Ryu situation, where he’s coming off surgery on the part of his body that is taking a little longer than expected to heal.

No, this feels like the Dodgers are being extra cautious with a player they absolutely cannot (I repeat: absolutely can-freakin’-not) have miss significant time. This forearm issue is coming from some kind of contusion, per Roberts all the way back to when we were in Arizona. I found it somewhat odd he said it was a contusion, but couldn’t identify when Grandal might’ve been hit.

Now, the last thing the Dodgers need is this forearm soreness leading to a Tommy John surgery, which would hold out Grandal for a calendar year. While it is frustrating to hear about these injuries on what feels like a daily basis, there is still no reason to rush anyone back until they are 100%. Grandal is not, so he sits.

[button color=”blue” size=”big” alignment=”center” rel=”follow” openin=”samewindow” url=”https://dodgersnation.com/dodgers-news-joc-pedersons-new-stance-working-wonders/2016/03/24/”]NEXT: Joc Pederson’s Swing Showing Positive Results[/button]