LOS ANGELES — It is a healthy Blake Snell that the Dodgers are most pleased about.
Everything else is a work in progress, for now.
Snell made his season debut and lasted just three innings while allowing five runs in a 7-2 loss to the Atlanta Braves.
The Dodgers scored their only runs on a two-run home run from Andy Pages with one out in the ninth inning.
With Snell set to go as many as five innings in what was expected to be his final minor league rehab start, the Dodgers elected to have Snell do the work on the Dodger Stadium mound instead and the rust was evident.
Snell loaded the bases three batters into the game and gave up a run in the first inning. He loaded the bases with two outs in the second inning and gave up four more runs. What looked to be a perfect third inning was derailed by a throwing error from shortstop Hyeseong Kim.
Of Snell’s five runs allowed, four were earned. He gave up six hits with two walks and five strikeouts with a fastball that averaged 95.9 mph. His fastball averaged 95.1 mph last season when he was also working through elbow issues.
“As we talked recently, he was never completely right last year,” manager Dave Roberts said. “So that’s obviously reflective of the stuff and the velocity. But yeah, I mean, it’s coming out pretty easy right now. So he says he hasn’t felt this good in quite some time.”
Part of the Dodgers’ inspiration for bringing back Snell one start early is that right-hander Tyler Glasnow went on the injured list Friday. Glasnow’s rotation spot won’t come up again until Thursday, but by keeping Snell on the day he would have pitched anyway, it allowed Roki Sasaki’s next start to be moved to Monday against the San Francisco Giants.
Had Snell been better Saturday, it is doubtful it would have made much of a difference. The on-again, off-again offense was nearly shut out for the second time and had just one hit off Atlanta right-hander Spencer Strider, who could serve as a guide of sorts for Snell.
Strider didn’t make his season debut until last weekend because of an oblique injury, and when he did finally take the mound, he gave up three runs on four hits with five walks in 3⅓ innings against the Colorado Rockies.
The Braves went on the prowl early when Mauricio Dubon led off the game against Snell with a single. Drake Baldwin followed with a walk and Atlanta loaded the bases three batters into the game when Ozzie Albies walked.
Snell showed his competitive spirit when he struck out Matt Olson, Austin Riley grounded out for a run and Michael Harris II struck out to prevent further damage.
Snell had two aboard with two outs in the second inning when he walked Baldwin to load the bases again. Albies and Olson followed with consecutive two-run singles.
Snell worked around a Hyeseong Kim throwing error in the third to pitch a scoreless third and his day was done after 77 pitches.
On offense, the Dodgers managed just a first-inning single from Will Smith against Strider, who finished with two walks and eight strikeouts over his six innings of work. They didn’t have another hit until Pages singled with one out in the seventh inning.
Pages’ ninth home run of the season came against Braves right-hander Reynaldo Lopez.
More to come on this story.