Rubby De La Rosa could need Tommy John Surgery

Rubby De La Rosa went on the disabled list today with elbow inflammation. Anytime a pitcher goes on the DL with elbow issues, Tommy John Surgery comes to mind. Zach Lee, the team's top pick in 2010, went on the minor-league DL earlier this season with elbow soreness, but thankfully that turned out OK.

The Dodgers' official Twitter account broke the news tonight:

"Rubby De La Rosa diagnosed with sprained UCL. He is weighing options & determining course of treatment. Unfortunately surgery is an option."

A miserable season that has seen poor performances on- and off-the-field, just got worse. De La Rosa has been one of the lone bright spots for the Dodgers this season, and now his 2012 season could be in jeopardy.

It's sad, unfortunate, but also part of the game. A lot of pitchers come back from Tommy John Surgery with a stronger arm. Although, it's hard to get much stronger than De La Rosa's.

Whatever the course of action, he needs to do what's best for him and his career. If it's Tommy John, get it done. There's no sense in risking his future for the chance to pitch for a likely .500 team in 2012.

Rubby, bite the bullet and have the surgery; 2013 is the Dodgers' year anyway.

If anything, this opens the door for Nathan Eovaldi, Allen Webster and Chris Withrow to make the 2012 rotation. It's conceivable that two of the three will be in the rotation to start the 2012 season. My money's on Eovaldi and Webster.

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Clayton Kershaw is good. He fired a complete game against the Padres tonight, needing just 109 pitches to get through nine innings. It was his fourth complete game of the season -- a career high. He had just one complete game coming into the 2011 season.