PHOENIX (AP) - Zack Greinke was scratched from his spring training start for the Dodgers on Monday against Milwaukee and went to Los Angeles to have his sore right elbow examined.
Greinke, signed to a $147 million, six-year contract in December as a free agent, threw a bullpen session Friday without issue, then felt discomfort while throwing Sunday.
Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said Greinke had a MRI last week that detected no ligament damage.
“The fact that he’s not here is a little bit of a concern,” Mattingly said. “Listening to Zack, he can pitch with this. I know we’re being really cautious. As a player, it clears the mind when you know nothing is going to get hurt by doing this. I was standing in during his bullpen, and if that’s him hurting with something serious going on, it would be a shocker.”
The Dodgers said Greinke was to be examined “out of an abundance of caution” and called it a “mild irritation in the back of his right elbow.”
Greinke was to be looked over by Dr. Neal ElAttrache, and the next outing for the 2009 AL Cy Young Award winner will be delayed pending the results.
Left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu replaced Greinke as Monday’s starter.
The 29-year-old Greinke was 15-5 with a 3.48 ERA and 200 strikeouts in 212 1-3 innings last year for the Milwaukee Brewers and Los Angeles Angels.
He has pitched five innings in two spring training starts, missing one turn because of flu. He was sidelined for the first month of the 2011 season because of a broken rib, an injury sustained while playing pickup basketball during the offseason.
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