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Another Key Dodgers Reliever Facing Possibility of Surgery
Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Brusdar Graterol may need surgery after a regression in his recovery from injury.
Graterol had been playing for the Triple-A Oklahoma City Comets in a rehab assignment but, on Friday, he was removed from the team with back pain.
He’d made four rehab appearances before the setback, and he was moving toward pitching in the big leagues for the first time since 2024.
However, Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes said Graterol will again miss significant time, and surgery is a real possibility, as reported by Katie Woo of The Athletic.
“Graterol and the team are still weighing other options,” Woo added.
Graterol isn’t giving up after setback
Despite what surely was disheartening news, Graterol hasn’t lost faith.
On social media, he posted an inspirational message.
“Baseball is not easy,” he said. “But it’s no reason to give up. LFG”
But that’s not the only setback he’s experienced recently, and he’s shown a drive to overcome obstacles.
In spring training, he detailed to Dodgers Nation’s Doug McKain that he’d worked out two or three times per day in the offseason to get back on track.
“I lost a few pounds, like 20 pounds right now, so I feel great,” he said.
Graterol is listed at 265 pounds by ESPN, but he said he was up to “280, 285,” and starting to get back into shape was hard.
“The first three weeks, to lose a lot of pounds … It’s so hard, I can’t walk or breathe, I can’t sleep very well. One day, I said, you know what, let me change my physical. And now I feel way better,” he said.
Graterol also told McKain that he’s “so proud of what I did with my body,” and he credits his family with giving him the motivation.
“Never give up, always stay strong,” he said. “Thank God my wife, my mom, my daughter were there next to me to push me, keep my head up.”
