SAN FRANCISCO — Dodgers pitcher Chad Billingsley, currently on the disabled list, cut short a bullpen session at AT&T Park on Tuesday with discomfort in his repaired right elbow and quickly headed back to Los Angeles for an MRI.
Billingsley made eight pitches before shutting down. It is the second setback he’s experienced, the other believed to be a scar tissue “pop” in the second inning of his first Minor League rehab assignment with Class A Advanced Rancho Cucamonga eight days ago.
“Not such good news,” said manager Don Mattingly. “After eight pitches he felt something in there, felt if he let it go, something was going on. He’ll go back to L.A. and get an MRI and find out.”
Billingsley underwent Tommy John elbow reconstruction last April and his rehab had gone remarkably smoothly until the scare last weekend.
Wilson activated off DL; Rodriguez sent down
SAN FRANCISCO — The Dodgers activated right-handed Brian Wilson off the disabled list Tuesday and optioned left-handed reliever Paco Rodriguez to Triple-A Albuquerque to make room on the roster.
Wilson was put on the DL 15 days ago to rebuild arm strength after rushing to be ready during a compressed Spring Training.
Rodriguez was the odd man out because he had options. He also had a 3.18 ERA in eight appearances this year, rebounding from last year’s late-season tailspin after five nearly unhittable months.
“Paco was a professional,” said manager Don Mattingly. “I’m sure he’s upset with it. The main reason is that Paco’s got options at this point. Can’t say it’s a great reason. But we’re going to see Paco again. He was tremendous last year and real good this year. There are a few things he can work on, and the silver lining is we can control his work and put him in tough situations while making sure he’s not overused or overworked.”
Rodriguez said he understood that he was only one of two Dodgers relievers (Chris Withrow the other) with options and without guaranteed contracts.
“This is just part of it,” he said. “I’ll just keep doing my thing down there. Oh, I could say they [cheated] me, but I’m going down there and work on getting back up there. I know how everything works. I’ll be professional about it. No big deal.”
Kershaw’s velocity up in bullpen session
SAN FRANCISCO — Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw threw a bullpen session Tuesday and showed his best velocity since being injured.
Kershaw threw 26 pitches in the AT&T Park bullpen, with manager Don Mattingly and pitching coach Rick Honeycutt watching and trainer Stan Conte monitoring velocity with an app. At one point, Mattingly stood in as an imaginary batter. Kershaw threw from the windup and stretch.
Kershaw was injured Opening Night in Australia on March 22, suffering a strained Teres Major muscle, which stabilizes the upper arm with the upper back near the armpit.
He was placed on the 15-day disabled list with no announced time frame for a return, although the injury was expected to sideline him a month or longer. After being shut down for about a week, Kershaw has remained on a throwing program.
Ken Gurnick is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.