Dodgers Pitcher Shut Down With Elbow Injury, Faces Uphill Battle to Return

The left-hander was 7-2 in 14 games with the Dodgers this season.

Sep 1, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Eric Lauer (33)t throws against the St. Louis Cardinals at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Eric Lauer's role on the Los Angeles Dodgers' pitching staff in September and October was already somewhat undefined. At least Lauer had a role — until Wednesday, when he was placed on the 15-day injured list with left elbow inflammation.

A 15-day IL stint means Lauer can't return until Sept. 17 at the earliest. Given that he'll be shut down from throwing for a few days at least, and the Dodgers have only 20 regular season games remaining this month, Lauer faces an uphill battle to establish a role for himself in October.

“It was an elbow, arm kind of thing, that he just didn’t feel good. And through the start, it was kind of showing itself a little bit,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “He’s such a good competitor, I don’t think he was thrilled about going on the IL.

“But we just can’t carry a player, a pitcher, for five or six days who we can’t go to, right? I know it’s a few days of no throwing, and then we’ll sort of revisit in two weeks.”

Lauer had allowed 19 runs over 20.1 innings dating to the beginning of August. If fans were wondering whether the veteran left-hander could play a valuable role for the Dodgers in the postseason, look no further than October 2025.

Lauer allowed only six hits and three runs across 8.2 innings for the Toronto Blue Jays during their postseason run a year ago. That included two scoreless outings in the World Series against the Dodgers, a span of 5.2 innings.

After he was acquired by the Dodgers from the Blue Jays in May, Lauer immediately joined the starting rotation and got off to a hot start. In his first nine starts — all Dodger victories — Lauer was 5-0 with a 2.96 ERA.

Coinciding with his recent cold stretch, the returns of left-hander Blake Snell and right-hander Tyler Glasnow pushed Lauer out of the rotation.

If healthy, Lauer could potentially join the Dodgers' bullpen in a long-relief role before the 2026 season is over. Yet their bullpen is already long on left-handers. Tanner Scott, Alex Vesia and Jack Dreyer are ahead of him in the bullpen pecking order.

Another left-hander, Kris Bubic, hasn't pitched since May because of an elbow injury of his own. Acquired by the Dodgers at the Aug. 3 trade deadline, Bubic has made two scoreless rehab appearances for Triple-A Oklahoma City in the last week. In theory, that puts him closer to joining the Dodgers' bullpen than Lauer.

If Lauer responds well to a throwing program, he could elbow his way back into the Dodgers' postseason plans. At the moment, however, he's running out of time.

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