UPDATE (Feb. 22, 8:45 a.m. PT:: According to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com, Zack Greinke will play catch three days after receiving a lubricating injection in his right elbow and being shut down:
Greinke resumes playing catch today.
— Ken Gurnick (@kengurnick) February 22, 2015
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One day after reporting for Spring Training, Los Angeles Dodgers pitchers and catchers were broken into groups to throw a bullpen session with Friday’s workout including Brett Anderson, Clayton Kershaw and Brandon McCarthy, among others.
For the pitchers who didn’t throw Friday, including Zack Greinke and Hyun-Jin Ryu, their session was scheduled for Saturday morning. While that held true for the remaining pitchers in camp, Greinke isn’t included in the group as he received a lubricating injection in his right elbow, according to Ken Gurnick of MLB.com:
Zack Greinke had a lubricating injection in elbow Thursday as precautionry measure to prevent annaul spring dead arm. Shut down a dew days.
— Ken Gurnick (@kengurnick) February 21, 2015
According to Eric Stephen of True Blue LA, the injection was a planned procedure and manager Don Mattingly indicated it’s par for course:
Dodgers say the lubricating injection in Zack Greinke's right elbow was part of his preseason conditioning, and planned maintenance
— Eric Stephen (@truebluela) February 21, 2015
Don Mattingly said Zack Greinke has had same lubricating injection in elbow all 3 springs with dodgers
— Eric Stephen (@truebluela) February 21, 2015
Greinke battled an elbow issue in his first Spring Training with the Dodgers and last year suffered a calf strain after landing awkwardly in the first inning of his Feb. 27 start. In both instances, he recovered in time for the beginning of the regular season.
Last August, there was some concern over an issue in Greinke’s right elbow that led to the club scratching his bullpen session between starts and he had a scheduled start pushed back.
The added rest apparently was enough for Greinke as he closed out the the year 5-0 with a 2.60 ERA in his final seven starts of the regular season. Greinke’s health will certainly be something to monitor this year as he holds an opt-out clause, which he said he won’t make a decision on until after the 2015 season.
Should he continue to battle elbow troubles, it wouldn’t come as a surprise if he elected to opt-in and take the remaining $77 million over three years rather than risk signing a new contract that may not be as lucrative as he once believed was possible because of the health concern.
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Zack Greinke Isn’t Sure If The Dodgers Improved During The Offseason
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