Dodgers News: Tony Gonsolin Likely Won’t Be Fully Healed by Opening Day
Dodgers RHP Tony Gonsolin suffered a fluke injury on Monday, when he rolled his ankle in practice. Gonsolin came up in some pain, and was forced to go to the clubhouse for some additional treatment. The injury didn't seem too bad, however, he was scratched from his scheduled start on Wednesday.
While we knew he wouldn't be pitching on Wednesday, we didn't know the severity of the injury. All we knew was that it didn't appear to be too bad, at least according to manager Dave Roberts.
But on Wednesday, Roberts must have gotten a new diagnosis. Because when he spoke to the media, he said that Gonsolin's ankle injury is still tender, and he doesn't expect him to be ready by Opening Day (per Fabian Ardaya).
The good news is the X-rays came back negative and there's no fracture. However, the fact that Gonsolin likely won't be ready in three-plus weeks is a pretty concerning sign.
Without Gonsolin in the rotation, the Dodgers will likely be relying on one of Ryan Pepiot or Michael Grove, who each made some spot starts last season. This will be a great opportunity for one of them to take a jump in year two, and prove that they deserve consistent playing time on the active roster.
As for Gonsolin, this is not at all the way he wanted his 2023 season to begin. Last year, he was a leading NL Cy Young candidate before he went down with an injury that pretty much cost him the rest of his season. He was able to come back and pitch in the postseason, but he was nowhere near the same pitcher.
This year, coming off an offseason in which he agreed to a two-year deal to avoid arbitration, Gonsolin would have loved to put the injury history behind him and put together a nice, full season. Hopefully, this ankle injury doesn't last too long, and he's able to get back with the team sooner rather than later.
