Dodgers Digest Los Angeles Dodgers Baseball Blog
This is not a duplicate post. Frankie Montas is going to miss another 4 to 8 weeks with a broken rib that is related to the surgery he had back in February.
The fracture stems from his initial rib resection surgery in February. This is a different rib. Montas reported discomfort this month.
— Andy McCullough (@ByMcCullough) June 24, 2016
The Dodgers had planned, basically, to promote Montas to the majors to start today. Brutal luck for them on this one.
— Andy McCullough (@ByMcCullough) June 24, 2016
And this is why the Nick Tepesch era is beginning later today.
Montas had been rehabbing with Tulsa and Oklahoma City before being optioned to OKC. Originally, it was thought Montas would come up and bolster the bullpen. But when there was a string of injuries in the rotation, the Dodgers kept him in the minors to stretch out to be a starter. He was placed on the minor-league disabled list on Monday (retroactive to last Friday). But now, he’s going to be out for awhile.
I’m guessing this would end Montas’ chances of being a starting pitcher this season, as he’ll be back well after the trade deadline (because, come on, he won’t be back in a month). At this rate, it’s probably better not to expect much of anything from Montas before September because it’s unknown how he’s going to recover from this latest setback.
Here’s hoping for a speedy recovery. Hopefully this means Julio Urias gets a few more starts because:
- They need his innings in the rotation
- He’s getting better and more acclimated to the majors
- Shutting him down and bringing him back later in the season seems like a bad idea
Until then, it’ll be more Mike Bolsinger, Tepesch and there might even be a Carlos Frias and/or Jharel Cotton sighting at some point.
