Andrew Cashner makes first minor league rehab start - MLB

According to Dennis Lin of U-T San Diego, Padres right-hander Andrew Cashner began a minor league rehab assignment last night with High-A Lake Elsinore and tossed two scoreless innings.

Cashner, out since June 23 with right shoulder soreness, allowed one hit and no walks while striking out three batters. He threw 19 out of 24 pitches for strikes. Jeff Sanders of U-T San Diego reports that he’s expected to make two more starts in the minors, with the next coming Wednesday with Double-A El Paso. The hope is that he’ll get stretched out to around 75-8o pitches before making his return.

Cashner, 27, owns a 2.36 ERA and 59/22 K/BB ratio in 76 1/3 innings over 12 starts this season. He’s under team control for two more seasons, so it will be interesting if new general manager A.J. Preller considers dealing him during the offseason. Proving his health and effectiveness down the stretch would increase the asking price.

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CINCINNATI — The Los Angeles Dodgers placed pitcher Noah Syndergaard on the 15-day injured list Thursday with a blister on the index finger of his right throwing hand.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said the timetable for Syndergaard’s return is unknown despite the 15-day designation.

“The physical, the mental, the emotional part, as he’s talked about, has taken a toll on him,” Roberts said. “So, the ability to get him away from this. He left today to go back to Los Angeles to kind of get back to normalcy.”

Syndergaard allowed six runs and seven hits in three innings against the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night, raising his ERA to 7.16.

Syndergaard (1-4) has surrendered at least five runs in three straight starts.

Syndergaard has been trying to return to the player he was before Tommy John surgery sidelined him for the better part of the 2020 and 2021 seasons.

Roberts said Syndergaard will need at least “a few weeks” to both heal and get away from baseball and “reset.”

“I think searching and not being comfortable with where he was at in the moment is certainly evident in performance,” Roberts said. “So hopefully this time away will provide more clarity on who he is right now as a pitcher.

“Trying to perform when you’re searching at this level is extremely difficult. I applaud him from not running from it, but it’s still very difficult. Hopefully it can be a tale of two stories, two halves when he does come back.”