One day after Dodgers manager Dave Roberts confirmed that 28-year-old right-hander Tony Gonsolin would begin the 2023 regular season on the Injured after spraining his left ankle during a workout a few days earlier, 25-year-old Dodgers right-hander Ryan Pepiot, who was slated to go four innings on Friday afternoon, was removed from his fourth start of the Spring against the Chicago Cubs at Sloan Field after only three innings for ‘discomfort’ in his left side.

“He had something with his side, kinda something in the midsection of his body, and we just felt that that long inning, after that third inning, we just felt that it was smart to punt on that last inning and get him ready for his next start,” Roberts told SportsNet LA’s Kirsten Watson after his team’s 9-7 win over the North Siders.

The great news is that the Indianapolis, IN native and Dodgers third round draft pick in 2019 out of Butler University allowed only one run on two hits, while walking two and striking out four in his (shortened) three innings of work.

The good news is that the hasn’t joined Gonsolin on the IL, at least not as of this writing. In fact, he never even mentioned his ‘discomfort’ to reporters during his postgame interview.

The less-than-good news is that he is now (unofficially) day-to-day, with Opening Day 2023 only 12 days away.

Stay tuned…

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