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Yoshinobu Yamamoto was placed on the 15-day injured list Sunday with a triceps strain, an injury that forced the Los Angeles Dodgers right-hander out of Saturday's 7-2 loss to the Kansas City Royals after two innings of work.
Yamamoto underwent further medical tests on Sunday, the results of which were not immediately available. The hope among the Dodgers is that the injury is not serious, but Houston Astros pitcher Justin Verlander experienced a similar triceps strain before Tommy John surgery in 2020.
"Right now, as I sit here, no, I don't think so," manager Dave Roberts said, speaking before Sunday's series finale against the Kansas City Royals, when asked if the injury could be a harbinger of something more serious.
"And I think he was smart enough to let us know when his triceps got a little tight. We will know more from his tests and our conversations with doctors, but I don't know. I really do not know."
Yamamoto allowed just one hit Saturday night, but his 28-pitch pace slowed significantly. His four-strike fastball was 92.9 mph and 95.9 mph with an average velocity of 94.2 mph, 1.3 mph less than his season average of 95.5 mph.
Later in the day the Dodgers received more bad news
Not only did the star pitcher was put on the Injured List, but also Mookie Betts. In the seventh inning, with the score 3 to 0 for Los Angeles with a man on first and two outs, Kansas City reliever Dan Altavilla delivered a 98 MPH fastball that hit one of the team's leaders.
The ball hit Mookie Betts on the back of his left hand and he immediately fell to the ground with clear signs of intense pain. He left the game right after and quickly underwent x-rays, the results of which showed a fracture in the bruised hand that manager Dave Roberts later announced to the media, confirming that Betts will be on the IL as well.