LOS ANGELES (AP) — Blake Snell struck out seven of the first 10 batters he faced Tuesday night before giving up back-to-back hits in his return to the mound for the Los Angeles Dodgers after being sidelined for three months with loose bodies in his left elbow.
He struck out the side on 13 pitches in the first inning Tuesday night against the Kansas City Royals and right-hander Michael Wacha.
“He's on a mission,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said before
the game.
After striking out Nick Loftin to open the fourth, Snell gave up back-to-back singles to Bobby Witt Jr. and Jac Caglianone. Witt scored on Salvador Perez's sacrifice fly, tying the game 1-1.
Snell allowed one more hit — a double to Tyler Tolbert in the fifth — before leaving after six innings with the game still tied. He gave up one run and three hits and struck out 10 while walking one.
The two-time Cy Young Award winner had made just one start this season, giving up four runs and six hits in three innings against Atlanta on May 9 before going on the injured list four days later.
Snell is one of three Dodgers pitchers to have had surgery for loose bodies this season. Closer Edwin Díaz had right elbow surgery in April and fellow two-time Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal had left elbow surgery in May while with the Detroit Tigers. Both are back pitching.
For the third consecutive season, Snell is returning from an injury in the second half. The NL West-leading Dodgers are looking for him to quickly get back on track, with the team having lost eight of its last 10 going into Tuesday.
“When he's going well, he's not really thinking about his mechanics and he's got a rhythm,” Roberts said beforehand. “When he's not and he's searching, the game kind of comes to a standstill.”
Roberts can easily tell when Snell is in command on the mound.
“There’s a little swagger," the manager said. "There’s a little kind of standing a little taller.”
Snell made three rehab starts for Triple-A Oklahoma City and another for Single-A Ontario, going 0-0 with a 3.09 ERA. He struck out 19 batters for a 14.7 strikeout-per-inning rate.
The 33-year-old left-hander had a 2.35 ERA last season, his first with Los Angeles after signing a $182 million, five-year deal. He helped the Dodgers win a second straight World Series championship, with three wins and a 3.18 ERA in six postseason games, including eight scoreless innings in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series against the New York Mets.
In other moves Tuesday, the team transferred reliever Blake Treinen to the 60-day IL. The 38-year-old right-hander has been out since June 20 while recovering from elbow inflammation. Roberts said he has not experienced a setback.
Left-hander Charlie Barnes was sent down a day after he was added, but didn't appear in the series opener against the Royals. Barnes went 0-1 with a 6.30 ERA in four appearances for the Dodgers.
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