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The Los Angeles Dodgers could be without one of their key starters on opening day.
The Los Angeles Dodgers are fresh off a second-straight World Series win. The Dodgers are hungry for more, though. They signed Kyle Tucker while bringing in Edwin Diaz to be the new closer. The rest of the team has remained largely unchanged. However, Los Angeles could start the season without one of their key starting pitchers, Blake Snell.
Per Jack Harris of the California Post, Blake Snell has taken his offseason throwing program very slowly. The plan is to be ready by opening day, but the uncertainty of the situation has grown.
“I feel like I’m doing the right thing. I feel good. I’ve been throwing. It feels better. In the postseason, I gave everything I had for that. But on the front end of spring, I’ll have to be patient and let my body get to 100%,” Snell told the California Post.
Blake Snell’s Postseason
GettyBlake Snell is dealing with some arm fatigue heading into the new season.
Snell was a major part of the World Series run last season. He made six appearances, including five starts. In those outings, the left-hander threw 34.0 innings, struck out 41 batters, allowed just 21 hits, and had a 3.18 ERA.
His best outing came in the NLCS against the Milwaukee Brewers when he threw eight shutout innings and struck out 10 batters. But the two-time Cy Young Award winner made an appearance in game seven of the World Series and threw 1.1 scoreless innings.
He was one of the workhorses in the World Series for the Dodgers. Because of this, it makes sense that the Dodgers want to be patient with his offseason throwing program. This is especially true when considering the shoulder injury he battled in 2025.
His postseason innings and early-season shoulder injury have contributed to that arm fatigue. Snell acknowledged to the California Post that his arm was exhausted once the season concluded. Because of this, the Dodgers are smart to take their time with Snell’s offseason program.
Other Dodgers Starting Pitchers
GettyYoshinobu Yamamoto will be the team’s ace in 2026.
The good news is that Los Angeles can afford to be patient with Snell. Their starting pitching group runs deep.
At the top of that is postseason hero Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Yamamoto threw the most innings for the Dodgers in the postseason, and he had a sub-2.00 ERA. The right-hander threw back-to-back complete games to help the Dodgers win crucial games. In total, Yamamoto finished the playoffs with five wins.
Another player who will be a starter for Los Angeles this season is Roki Sasaki. Sasaki dealt with a shoulder injury for the majority of the year in 2025, but came up big in the playoffs. However, all nine of his appearances came out of the bullpen. But the right-hander is poised to be in the rotation in 2026.
Tyler Glasnow and Shohei Ohtani will also slot into the rotation. Both are big-time arms, and the Dodgers will need them to stay healthy while Snell makes his way back to the rotation.
All in all, Los Angeles is set up to succeed without Snell. There is still a chance he is ready by opening day, but it is looking more and more unlikely.
Cam Zunkel Cam Zunkel has been a sports journalist since 2022. He covers the NBA and MLB for Heavy.com. Cam also covers multiple MLB teams for On SI – part of the Sports Illustrated Brand. He is a former collegiate baseball player with two stops in the independent Frontier League. More about Cam Zunkel
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