If their CEO's fears are realized, Dodgers starting pitcher Chad Billingsley could be done for the season, according to a report by the Los Angeles Times.
Dodgers president and chief executive officer Stan Kasten spoke at a fan discussion Thursday night and expressed his fear -- not based on medical evidence -- that the right elbow inflammation that landed Billingsley on the disabled list Monday could cause him to miss the remainder of the season. The same elbow issues forced him to the disabled list for most of July.
Billingsley was 6-0 with a 1.30 ERA in his six starts prior to suffering the injury while pitching against the Miami Marlins on Aug. 24.
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If Billingsley cannot return this year, it would be a serious blow to the Dodgers' postseason aspirations. Los Angeles trails the Giants by 3 12 games in the NL West, and it trails the Cardinals by 1 12 games for the second NL Wild Card berth.
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Billingsley, 28, has good career numbers against the Giants. He is 8-6 with a 3.16 ERA in 22 career starts against San Francisco, and most recently he pitched shutout baseball into the eighth inning of a 10-0 Dodgers win at AT&T Park on July 28.
Behind reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw, pitching is and has been the biggest area of concern for the Dodgers.
Looking to bolster the position, the Dodgers acquired Josh Beckett Sunday in the blockbuster trade that also brought Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford to southern California.
San Francisco Giants
Beckett lost his debut with the Dodgers in Colorado, and the pitchers behind Kershaw and Beckett -- Joe Blanton, Aaron Harang and Chris Capuano -- have struggled mightily of late.