Blake Snell Leaves His Dodgers Start After One Inning With Left Groin Tightness
Blake Snell was pulled after one inning Wednesday night in Cincinnati, his third stint on the injured list this season now potentially looming, after leaving with left groin tightness that is all too familiar for the two-time Cy Young Award winner.
Snell had been dominant since returning from arthroscopic elbow surgery on August 11, posting a 1.04 ERA across six starts with no more than one run allowed in any of them.
Then on Wednesday his four-seam fastball averaged 94.5 mph, down 1.5 mph from his season average — and his slider was 2.3 mph below average in the one pitch he threw.
He threw 19 pitches total, allowed one hit, struck out one, and walked off with trainer Thomas Albert. Blake Treinen entered for what became an unplanned six-reliever bullpen game. The Dodgers lost 6-2.
He has dealt with left groin and adductor issues in 2021, 2022 and twice in 2024 with the Giants. The recurring nature of the problem is the most alarming part.
The Dodgers were expected to lean on Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tarik Skubal as their playoff rotation, those plans are now uncertain. Los Angeles still entered Wednesday needing one win or a Padres loss to clinch the NL West.
