Dodgers right-hander Brusdar Graterol underwent back surgery yesterday and could miss the remainder of the season as a result, reports Jack Harris of the California Post. The right-hander, already on the mend from Nov. 2024 shoulder surgery, missed all of the 2025 season and hasn’t thrown in a big league game since the 2024 playoffs.
Specifics of Graterol’s surgery aren’t clear, but it’s a frustrating setback for an extremely talented right-hander who simply hasn’t been able to avoid the injured list. Graterol pitched only seven regular-season innings in 2024 due to recurring shoulder troubles. He’s pitched in parts of six MLB seasons but has only 50 innings in one of those six seasons. Graterol boasts a terrific 2.78 earned run average in his career but has only managed to pitch 190 2/3 frames dating back to his late-season debut with the Twins in 2019.
Minnesota traded Graterol to the Dodgers in the 2019-20 offseason deal that sent Kenta Maeda the other direction. In retrospect, it’s been a pretty fair deal for both sides. Both pitchers missed substantial time with injury but were largely effective when healthy enough to take the mound with their new teams. Graterol has a 2.69 ERA in 180 innings as a Dodger (not including the playoffs) and was dominant in the healthiest season of his career (2023): 67 1/3 innings, 1.20 ERA, 19 holds, seven saves, 18.7% strikeout rate, 4.7% walk rate and a colossal 64.4% ground-ball rate.
The surgery could very well spell the end of Graterol’s tenure in Los Angeles. It doesn’t sound as though it’s a foregone conclusion that his season is finished, but if this does shelve him for the remainder of the year, he’s slated to become a free agent for the first time in the 2026-27 offseason.
At the very least, Harris notes that Graterol is facing a monthslong absence. Perhaps he can return for a handful of late appearances, as he did in 2024, but the Dodgers will again navigate the summer without one of their most talented bullpen arms. Graterol had begun a rehab assignment in early May before suffering a setback a couple weeks in.
The Dodgers already had Edwin Diaz on the 60-day IL after he required surgery to remove loose bodies from his elbow. Evan Phillips is nearing the one-year anniversary of his Tommy John surgery and is still a ways from returning. Brock Stewart has managed to pitch only two innings this season owing to shoulder and foot injuries. Ben Casparius has been out since mid-April due to shoulder inflammation.
Despite that slate of injuries, L.A.’s bullpen has been dominant. Dodgers relievers rank fourth in the majors in ERA (3.12), first in FIP (3.15), fifth in SIERA (3.36), second in strikeout rate (25.6%) and ninth in walk rate (9.2%). Their top seven relievers by innings pitched — Tanner Scott, Alex Vesia, Will Klein, Jack Dreyer, Kyle Hurt, Edgardo Henriquez and Blake Treinen — all have ERAs of 3.43 or better.
Wesside
Dang he can’t stay healthy.
Looks like it’s time to go get Chapman lol
Yes, I’m joking, sorta.
I’ll correct you. It’s almost time.
Give us a few weeks to see where we’re at. I’m still holding out Hope the offense comes around. But we’re scuffling pretty bad.
Honestly for the sake of some of the cooler Red Sox fans here I hope it gets turned around.
But if not? We’d love to help you by taking Chapman’s contact off your hands.
Dodgers are doing fine with bullpen! We don’t need Chapman! If there’s one thing Dodgers need it is hitting and a healthy starting pitcher since Glasnow and Snell can’t stay off Injured list!
Given the success that the Dodgers have had dealing with the Red Sox, I would think Chapman could be had for the first son of next year’s 20th round draft pick.
They’ll be available when it matters. Which is what matters. The team has the second best record in baseball with some of their pieces still not playing to their normal levels.
While I was kinda joking about adding Chapman, it would serve two purposes.
First it would take an upgrade option off the table for postseason opponents. Secondly, it would add an extremely effective relief arm with extensive experience. Having a shutdown bullpen is how the Padres have been winning games despite their offensive issues.
Where exactly could they add offense? I can think of a player here or there who might make sense. But you’re then dropping someone. Who is it?
Since the DH spot is taken, it limits options. Add Mike trout? Teo hits big and has been playing a solid outfield. Not to mention his intangibles. You can’t move Pages or Tucker.
Freddie, Mookie, Muncy aren’t going anywhere. Catcher is locked up. Edman is coming back, along with Kike(again) at some point. Bench is solid with Rojas, the Alex’s, Kim in AAA, etc. Ryan Ward just hit his first home run at Dodger stadium.
Realistically the only place they can add value is pitching. And there are only a few guys who would be an upgrade to their current situation.
We’re only a third of the way through the season, so everything is subject to change. And I’m certain the front office is working to find their best way to add. Regular season isn’t the goal. Winning the world series is. So it’s ok if some of the guys aren’t truly going yet it are working through injuries.
Yep. As much as it galls fans of other teams (I get it), the Dodgers have enough deserved confidence in winning in the regular season to already be looking towards the postseason. If they don’t get Snell and Glasnow back by mid-July, they could be in the market for a starter. If Phillips, Graterol, and Diaz are all scratches, they might be hunting for another leverage reliever. Otherwise, the roster we see now is, more or less, the one that plays in the postseason.
BTW, I’d give the Dodgers the current “best team” edge by virtue of their 20 run differential advantage over the Braves.
I think best team for me is team playing the best baseball. That’s Atlanta at the moment.
Best roster? Dodgers
This news is not Great-at-all.
He done Brus-dar back purtee guut. He need dat dare surgical procedure.
You need to learn how to make sense! You also need to learn to spell! Guess Red Sox don’t spell or make sense!
Just my poor attempt at humor. Thought the first card was played so I followed suit.
I’m not sure about me personally, but the Red Sox made a lot of sense when they rejected Brusdar and took Connor Wong instead.
Yeah but not exactly Jason Varitek. That trade was epic.
“Is loving you is Wong, I don’t wanna be right…”
Yep, we all remember that one. I think they got Derek Lowe also. For Heathcliff Slocum? That’s the name that popped into my head without looking it up?
What’s the point of speculating about when or if he can return to pitching this year when the nature of his back surgery is “unclear” (read: not disclosed, therefore unknown)?
I view that as more of a segway to talk about how good the bullpen has been despite some key injuries. Good reporting also explains all of the possible scenarios when there’s not enough information to detail exactly what is going on.
I see the words “unclear” or “not clear” used a lot in reporting in instances where, in fact, nothing is known. This makes “unknown” the accurate word choice IMO. Granted, this gives the writer little room to speculate. But then, they probably shouldn’t be speculating. And while I’m being pedantic (sorry!), a Segway is a scooter. The word you were after is segue.
Unnecessary spelling correction.
Spelling corrections are aways necessary, but some are more necessary than others. 😉
I was a big fan of Diego Seguè when I was a kid. He had a nice season for the one and only Seattle Pilots season.
baseball-reference.com/players/s/seguidi01.shtml
Are you trying to change the subject?
What’s speculation doing here on an MLB rumors forum? We can tolerate rumors but none of that speculation stuff.
FWIW, as of now the Dodgers have not updated Graterol’s IL status to indicate that he underwent any surgery. So officially nobody knows nothin’. The point being, if you’re just guessing, say so. Or don’t guess.
The answer to your question is unclear
The Magic 8-Ball Speaks!
Speedy Recovery
Good luck Brusdar.
What will they do? He’s not part of their exclusive tier highly paid player load management plan for October?
Time to hang em up
So who won the Maeda vs Graterol trade?
Sometimes nobody wins… although, didn’t Maeda come in second in the Cy Young voting one season with the Twins?
Yes. The 2020 season he was really good
Man, I’m a Twins fan, but the organization sure does abnormally well at developing very talented but oft-injured players. The Twins are rarely the best at any one thing, so I’ll take the win.
Seems like more baseball players than ever have back injuries. These guys aren’t old enough to have back problems. What’s going on? before a lot of you on here start losing your minds I wasn’t being dead serious when I said they weren’t old enough to have back problems.
When in need of a good laugh, I’ll watch his celebration after Bellinger robbed Tatis Jr in the ’20 playoffs. Classic….
Ryan Brasier on deck
Jerry Hairston Jr’s hairstyle is sooooo Dipoto. Bro needs to look in the mirror and second guess going on TV. He may as well kick back at home and do roids. Like me.