LOS ANGELES — Justin Wrobleski’s breakout year for the Los Angeles Dodgers is on pause, as the first-time All-Star landed on the injured list Sunday with what the club called left forearm inflammation.
Wrobleski, who broke into the rotation in April and has emerged as one of the steadiest arms for the reigning back-to-back World Series champions, has struggled since the All-Star break and was approaching his professional career-high at 126 1/3 innings. He surrendered a pair of home runs and allowed four runs total over six innings in Saturday’s 4-1 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers, but after the outing he came away encouraged that his stuff and delivery were finally where he was looking for them to be.
“I think today I kind of figured something out a little bit,” Wrobleski said. “With my delivery and with everything, I feel like I’m in a good spot moving forward, as odd as that sounds.”
Wrobleski’s outing Sunday saw him average 96 mph on his fastball and top out at 98.7 mph, both of which are season-highs. It also saw a continuation of a concerning trend. The two home runs Wrobleski allowed Saturday gave him 11 home runs allowed in 26 innings since making his first-ever All-Star appearance, a stretch where he had a 6.92 ERA.
Before the break, Wrobleski had a 2.69 ERA, emerging as a surprise story with his bullying approach of pounding the strike zone and a nickname, “The Shark,” bestowed upon him by Hall of Famer Pedro Martínez. Now, it’s up to 3.56.
The Dodgers and Wrobleski have downplayed the role fatigue might be having on his recent downturn. He previously threw 132 innings across three levels in 2024, and totaled 88 innings between Triple A and the majors in 2025.
Wrobleski said Saturday he was “feeling as good as I can right now.”
If Wrobleski makes it back this season, it might not be as a starter, as manager Dave Roberts said Saturday he expects Wrobleski to slot into a bullpen role this October — something he did during the team’s 2025 run.
Kyle Hurt was recalled in Wrobleski’s place. Sunday’s IL placement comes at a time when the Dodgers could use the extra bullpen arm. The club has been running a seven-man bullpen, with Roberts saying this weekend that “essentially all of our relievers are overworked right now.” A trip to Coors Field this coming week will certainly provide another test as the team wraps up a stretch of 13 games without a break.
The team has an off day on Thursday, and again the following Monday, meaning the club can still get its five healthy starters adequate rest while having a typical eight-man group in the bullpen.
Tyler Glasnow is expected to return to the Dodgers’ rotation after those two off days, so long as all goes well in his final start on his rehab assignment. Glasnow has been out since May with back spasms.
