The Phillies-series glow lasted about 48 hours. Arizona handed the Dodgers a loss, Graterol's in surgery nobody saw coming, and Glasnow is officially nowhere near a mound. Welcome to Dodgers Daily. We’ve got a two-way Ohtani start Wednesday, a bullpen held together with prayers, and the most confusing injury board in baseball. We’re going to unpack what that surprise surgery says about this front office, whether Ohtani pitching and hitting Wednesday is the one clean headline we get, and why a Double-A kid named De Paula suddenly looks a lot more real than a 2027 dream. Here's CBS Sports:
Ketel Marte launched a two-run homer, Nolan Arenado and rookie Tommy Troy hit solo shots and the Arizona Diamondbacks rallied for a 4-1 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday night. The Dodgers lost for just the fourth time in 18 games. Shohei Ohtani had a three-hit night and has 10 hits over his last five games.
38-22 Dodgers, one run, four-one loss to a team that came in 32-27. Eduardo Rodriguez went six innings of one-run ball and put up a 2.24 ERA on the year — credit where it’s due, but a healthy Dodgers lineup should do more with that. Marte and Arenado. Of course. The one night we’re supposed to be riding the Phillies high, the Diamondbacks roll out their two best guys and bury us. And Sheehan did give them a puncher’s chance — two runs, three hits in his outing — so yeah, this one lands on the offense. Ohtani went three-for-four, ten hits in five games. So no, the lineup isn’t dead. It just couldn’t build anything around him, and that’s become a pattern when the injury depth chart looks like this. And now Glasnow is confirmed nowhere near a return, Graterol just had surprise surgery — surprise, as in nobody saw it coming until it happened — and we’re watching Paul Sewald close out the ninth against us. I let myself enjoy Sunday. This is what I get. From Sports Illustrated:
In other news, right-handed pitcher Tyler Glasnow is taking longer to return from his back injury than expected. Glasnow was initially expected to spend a minimum amount of time on the injured list, but is currently without a timetable to return after being sidelined for more than three weeks.
Glasnow update from last time we checked in: what was supposed to be a short IL stint is now a no-timetable holding pattern. Sports Illustrated says he’s nowhere near return, so this isn’t a watch item anymore. It’s a long absence. And then Graterol announces on Instagram — Instagram — that he just had back surgery. No press release, no front office heads-up, the guy posts it to his story. That’s how we found out? That’s why the Sports Illustrated framing lands. They called it a surprise surgery, and when the news comes via Instagram after a rehab setback, surprise is doing the right amount of work. The Dodgers have a real information gap here. Graterol hasn’t thrown a pitch for this team since the 2024 World Series. Two years. And now it’s back surgery with no timetable. Between him and Glasnow, the bullpen depth chart just got a lot more theoretical. Sports Illustrated, with Noah Camras:
Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts announced that two-way star Shohei Ohtani will both pitch and hit in his start against the Arizona Diamondbacks this week. Ohtani is scheduled to pitch in Wednesday's game, and it appears he'll also be leading off for his third straight pitching start.
Roberts confirmed it — Ohtani pitches and hits Wednesday, and it’s his third straight pitching start leading off. This time there’s no day off buffer. Four-game series in Arizona, then they play Thursday. Dave’s doing it anyway. And honestly? With Glasnow nowhere near return and Graterol suddenly in surprise surgery, Ohtani at 0.82 ERA is the one guy on this staff you can point to and say, ‘that’s real.’ I need Wednesday to go well. His command’s been a little shaky the last two starts, so “going well” isn’t guaranteed. But the bat has been ridiculous — .386, 1.152 OPS over fifteen games, a homer in each of his last two pitching starts. He said himself he thinks there’s another level if he can get to left-center more consistently. That’s a terrifying sentence. The Dodgers just lost to a 32-27 Arizona team last night. I am extremely motivated for Wednesday. Here's Cody Snavely at Talkin' Blue:
Phillips, 31, is set to travel with the team to Arizona and face live hitters, and if all goes well, he’ll go out on a rehab assignment with the Oklahoma City Comets shortly after. The Dodgers bullpen felt Phillips' absence last season, posting one of the worst stretches in the second half and ending the year with one of the worst-ranked bullpens in the sport.
Talkin’ Blue published a full injury-board rundown Monday, and the part I’d actually call good news is Evan Phillips facing hitters this week in Arizona, with a rehab assignment expected right after. That’s a legitimate closer-caliber arm getting close to real games. Phillips coming back is great, but I’ve been staring at the other names on that list — Glasnow nowhere near return, Graterol in for surprise surgery, Teoscar out weeks with a hamstring. The board didn’t get shorter, it got a new entry. Teoscar’s timeline is at least defined now — confirmed hamstring strain, multi-week horizon, no mystery there. Glasnow is a different conversation. “Nowhere near return” isn’t a timeline. That’s a door closing. And Graterol — Sports Illustrated called it a surprise surgery, which means nobody outside the building saw it coming. That’s not an IL shuffle. That’s the front office sitting on information, and I want to know what “surprise” actually covers. This one's from True Blue LA:
Dodgers top prospect Josue De Paula tied career highs with four hits and two home runs in Double-A Tulsa’s win on Sunday. The Drillers right fielder hit a two-run shot in the third inning and a solo shot in the seventh.
Let’s put one good thing on the board before we get back to the injury ledger. Josue De Paula went four-for-four with two homers for Tulsa on Sunday, and True Blue LA calls it the most power-packed month of his career. Four runs scored, and he already had two multi-hit games earlier this season. Okay, I said “cars without engines” about this pipeline back in May, and De Paula is making me at least open the hood again. Two homers, four hits, best power month of his career — that’s not a fluke game, that’s a trend. He’s still a 2027 ETA, though. Enjoy the stat line, just don’t start penciling him into the lineup card while Glasnow is “nowhere near return” and Graterol is in surprise surgery. Yeah, 2027 is 2027. But Edman also hit a two-run shot in his rehab assignment and just played center field for the first time since his ankle surgery — so at least something is moving toward the big-league roster instead of away from it. If Dodgers Daily is part of your routine, check out Angel City Daily Podcast — a daily ACFC supporter briefing with match reaction, NWSL standings, roster moves, women’s soccer in Los Angeles, and supporter buzz. Find it wherever you listen to podcasts.
We’ve put links to every story from today’s briefing in the show notes, so if something caught your ear, you can jump in and read more there.
That’s Dodgers Daily Podcast for this Tuesday, June 2nd. This is a Lantern Podcast.