Blake Snell Scratched, Dodgers Face Bullpen Plan in Mlb Games Today
Blake Snell was scratched from the Dodgers’ Friday night game against the Angels, shifting the planned pitching setup for mlb games today. Los Angeles was likely to use a bullpen game in the series opener, a quick turn after Snell had just returned to the rotation.
Snell’s latest setback comes after a start that lasted only three innings against the Atlanta Braves, when he allowed five runs, four earned, in his season debut last Saturday. The Dodgers had been trying to work him back after shoulder fatigue and a 2025 regular season that was interrupted by a lingering shoulder injury.
Snell’s Friday Night Change
The scratch came before the game, and the reason for it was not initially reported. Katie Woo of The Athletic reported the change first, but the important detail for the Dodgers is the timing: Snell was already in line to face the Angels in the series opener, and the plan changed before the first pitch.
That leaves Los Angeles to piece together the night differently than it had prepared for. A bullpen game asks a staff to cover innings in a different order, and it puts the burden on the relievers rather than a scheduled starter who was supposed to anchor the matchup.
Snell’s Short Return
Snell has made 12 regular-season starts with the Dodgers since signing a $182-million, five-year contract in November 2024. His shoulder has already cost him most of the 2025 regular season, when he made just 11 starts.
He also showed last Saturday how limited the return could be. Against Atlanta, he was knocked out after three innings and gave up five runs, four earned, before this latest scratch changed the Dodgers’ immediate plan again.
Snell’s work in October is still part of the picture. He went 3-2 in six post-season games as the Dodgers won their second consecutive World Series title, but Friday night was about something more basic for Los Angeles: whether his turn in the rotation would actually hold. It did not, and the Dodgers now have to manage the opener against their crosstown rivals without him.
