Kershaw heads to IL with bone spur in left toe

PHOENIX -- The Dodgers’ already thin starting rotation got even thinner on Saturday when Clayton Kershaw was placed on the 15-day injured list.

The veteran southpaw was removed after one-plus inning on Friday night due to a sore left big toe that prevented him from fully pushing off the rubber, and manager Dave Roberts revealed postgame that the issue was caused by a bone spur that Kershaw has been dealing with for "maybe a couple of years," but he’s normally able to keep the pain at bay with preventative treatment.

“There’s so much swelling, he can barely move around with it,” Roberts said.

Kershaw will need to undergo treatment and get the inflammation under control before the Dodgers have a clear timeline for his return, but Roberts is hopeful the three-time NL Cy Young Award winner will be able to rejoin the rotation after the minimum stay on the shelf. That would give him as many as three starts before the postseason.

“Each day we’ll know more. Obviously we’ve got 15 days to kind of see where we’re at,” Roberts said. “The calendar is working against us, certainly as a starter, but I don’t think 15 days will cut into the buildup [to get back to] where he’s been.”

Kershaw, who made his season debut on July 25 after rehabbing from offseason shoulder surgery, has made seven starts this season, posting a 4.50 ERA with 24 strikeouts across 30 innings.

“I think in Clayton’s head, he just wants to get this to subside and get back as soon as he can,” Roberts said. “We just won’t know until we can get the swelling down.”

Roberts isn’t ready to consider whether this injury could lead to Kershaw being left off the postseason roster.

“That’s not where any of our heads are at right now,” Roberts said. “Our expectation is that he will [be ready in time for the postseason].”

The Dodgers’ rotation was already without Tyler Glasnow (right elbow tendinitis) and Yoshinobu Yamamoto (right triceps tightness), not to mention Tony Gonsolin (2023 Tommy John surgery), River Ryan ('24 Tommy John surgery) and Dustin May, who is out until ’25 following elbow and esophagus surgeries.

Yamamoto is the closest to returning. He’ll make his second rehab start at Triple-A Oklahoma City on Tuesday, but that outing is only expected to be for three innings and he’ll almost certainly need at least one more start before rejoining the Dodgers.

Glasnow is being brought back slowly and Roberts said the best-case scenario for his return would be a timeline similar to Kershaw’s, where he’d return in mid-September and make three starts to build up for the postseason.

The Dodgers’ rotation currently includes Jack Flaherty, Walker Buehler, Bobby Miller and Saturday’s starter Gavin Stone. Lefty Justin Wrobleski is being called up from Triple-A Oklahoma City to start Sunday.

The 24-year-old, who is ranked by MLB Pipeline as the Dodgers’ No. 6 prospect, has made five starts for the Dodgers this season, posting a 4.68 ERA over 25 innings.

Kershaw’s early exit on Friday also burned the Dodgers’ bullpen, as seven relievers had to cover eight innings in the 10-9 victory, so the club recalled right-hander Ben Casparius on Saturday.

Casparius had his contract selected by the Dodgers on Aug. 18, but he did not make his big league debut before being optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City on Aug. 21. The 25-year-old, ranked as the Dodgers' No. 23 prospect by MLB Pipeline, has a 3.31 ERA in 19 appearances (18 starts) for OKC, so he's able to provide multiple innings out of the ‘pen.