The Dodgers stopped their slide on Tuesday night, fighting back from an early 3-0 hole to beat the Padres 8-6. Carl Crawford came alive by going 3-for-3 with a two-run homer, Justin Turner added two doubles, and a great defensive play at third ended the game.
That's the good news.
The bad news? Zack Greinke will most likely miss his next start on Thursday due to what is being called a "tender elbow." The club doesn't seem too concerned with it right now, as he has been able to throw off flat ground at least.
Still, any time a pitcher is dealing with any sort of elbow problems, it has the potential to be a huge worry. Especially when that pitcher is a former Cy Young Award winner and current All-Star.
There's no doubt that Greinke has not been his normal self over his last three starts. He certainly hasn't been pounded, but did walk five Brewers his last start, surrender four runs on eight hits to the Brewers the start before, and three earned run in seven innings against the Angels the start before. They've all been Dodger loses, though that's certainly not all his fault.
Right now the Dodgers' depth is seriously being put to the test, as Hyun-Jin Ryu, Juan Uribe, and Hanley Ramirez are all sitting on the DL, to name a few. Their numbers are very hard to replace, obviously. So if Greinke gets added to that list, or is forced to miss a start or two, it will be even harder to win. There's no other way about it.
It's a good thing Ned Colletti added a couple of arms in Roberto Hernandez and Kevin Correia recently. Yes, I know they're not the greatest pitchers on Earth, but they are veteran starters who can take the ball at any time. And that time is now.
Let's all hope Greinke is just fine, and some extra rest will do the trick as the Dodgers try to regain some momentum. If he is hurt worse than we think... then that's a huge blow for this team.
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