It has become a daily question: Who’s it going to be today; not necessarily which Dodgers starter is going to get injured – Heaven knowns, they all have been –  but rather who will be called up to replace them.

Only minutes before his scheduled start on Thursday against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park, Dodgers bullpen coach Mark Prior called down to the Dodgers dugout to report that scheduled starter Dennis Santana, who had been called up from Triple-A Oklahoma City a week earlier to replace right-hander Kenta Maeda, (who himself landed on the disabled list with a strained right hip) was unable to go due to an apparent lat injury. Ironically, the Dodgers still somehow managed to beat the lowly Bucs by using a franchise-record-setting nine relievers.

A MRI on Friday would reveal that Santana had actually suffered a right rotator cuff strain and, in all probability, is DL bound, where he will join Maeda, Clayton Kershaw (back), Hyun-Jin Ryu (groin), and Rich Hill (blister).

But wait, there’s more.

With one out in the top of the fifth inning at a nearly sold out Dodger Stadium on Friday night, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts noticed that his star young right-hander Walker Buehler had a significant loss in his fastball velocity.

“As he was going through tonight’s start, we saw in that sixth inning, the velocity started to tick down a little bit and it just seemed like he wasn’t letting it go like he was earlier,” Roberts told reporters, following the Dodgers dominating 7-3 win over the Atlanta Braves. “And so, for me that was a big red flag that he was protecting [an injury].

“And so, as I went out there with the trainer and we talked, and he just said that he had a little bit of trouble breathing and he was in pain,” said Roberts. “So, at that point in time, obviously it’s not a pitch-count thing, it’s kind of what your eyes are telling you and talking to the player. So, we wanted to get Walker out of there.

“To his credit, he’s as tough as they come and wanted to stay in there, but obviously it was a no-brainer for us,” Roberts added.

Buehler was removed from Friday night’s game with one out in the sixth inning after having made only 71 pitches and having struck out four and walking none. He allowed only one run on two hits.
(Photo credit – Jayne Kamin-Oncea)

Buehler, if you recall, took a 108-MPH line drive off his ribs during his start at Dodger Stadium on May 21 off the bat of Colorado Rockies shortstop Trevor Story. Not only did the 23-year-old Lexington, Kentucky and Dodgers 2015 first-round draft pick (out of Vanderbilt University) make the play to retire the speedy Story, he remained in the game for two more innings before being replaced by eventual game-loser Pedro Baez in the seventh.

“After taking that line drive off the ribs, I think he showed, not only myself but all the guys, what he’s made of,” Dodgers veteran second baseman Chase Utley told reporters after that game.

Not only did Buehler make the play after taking a line drive off the ribs on May 21, he would remain in the game for another two innings. (Photo credit – Sean M. Haffey)

Taking it one step further, Buehler made two more starts after that – on May 27 against the San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium, where he picked up his third win of the season going 7.0 innings, and against those same Colorado Rockies on June 2 at Coors Field, in which he did not figure in the decision after going 5.0 innings in the eventual 12-4 Dodgers blowout win.

Following Friday night’s game, in which Buehler was credited with the win, he was sent out for X-rays and, as of this writing, the results have not yet been revealed. That being said, it is hard to believe that even if the X-rays come back negative, that he would not miss at least one start, and perhaps several if he lands on the disabled list.

Getting back to Dennis Santana, prior to Friday night’s game, ThinkBlue LA learned that 27-year-old journeyman minor leaguer Daniel Corcino had been called up from Triple-A Oklahoma City. And even though there has been no official announcement from the Dodgers that it will indeed be Corcino who will fill Santana’s spot in the beleaguered Dodgers rotation, the 5′-11″ / 210-pound hard-throwing left-hander has already joined the team in Los Angeles.

(Gurnick inadvertently misspelled Corcino’s last name)

The good news is that Corcino is 2-0 with a very impressive 1.95 ERA in his 12 appearances (11-starts) with the OKC Dodgers and is a worthy replacement for his fellow countryman.

The bad news is that the Dodgers will now (apparently) have to find a replacement for Buehler in their starting rotation.

Although it is pure speculation, that replacement will more than likely be 27-year-old left-hander Manny Banuelos, who is currently 6-3 with a solid 3.45 ERA in his 12 games (11 starts) at Triple-A Oklahoma City.

As we’ve been hearing (and seeing) all season long – and will probably continue to hear (and see), the Dodgers have been operating with a “next-man-up” mentality thus far through the 2018 season; during which they are now 32-31 on the season (.508) and currently in a three-way tie for second place in the National League West with the Rockies and San Francisco Giants and a mere 1.5 games behind the division-leading Arizona Diamondbacks.

Stay tuned…