Dodgers reliever Blake Treinen has surgery to repair shoulder

Reliever Blake Treinen did indeed have shoulder surgery that will likely sideline him for all of the 2023 season.

The Dodgers officially announced Treinen’s surgery Friday. Earlier in the week, GM Brandon Gomes acknowledged that the team had talked to Treinen following the season about his medical options to resolve shoulder problems that limited him to five innings pitched during the 2022 season.

The surgery involved repairs to both the rotator cuff and labrum in Treinen’s pitching shoulder. The Dodgers offered no recovery timetable but it is likely to take up to a year, making Treinen unavailable for the 2023 season.

Treinen was sidelined for most of the 2022 season with what he eventually revealed was a tear in the capsule in his right shoulder. The 34-year-old reliever said that Dr. Neal ElAttrache recommended surgery to repair the tear early in the season but Treinen opted for a course of treatment centered on a platelet-rich plasma injection.

The capsule tear scarred over well enough for Treinen to return and pitch for the Dodgers in September. He made just two appearances but was on the Dodgers’ postseason roster and made one appearance in the NL Division Series loss to the San Diego Padres.

But Treinen pitched in pain due to damage to his rotator cuff and labrum in addition to the capsule tear.

An All-Star with the Oakland A’s in 2018, Treinen signed with the Dodgers following a down year in 2019. He was the Dodgers’ most valuable reliever in 2020 and 2021, posting a 2.48 ERA and 1.04 WHIP over 99 appearances in those seasons.

While he was rehabbing from the torn shoulder capsule last May, the Dodgers signed Treinen to a contract extension that essentially replaced the club option he had for 2023. Instead, his $8 million salary is guaranteed next season.

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