Dodgers lose Evan Phillips for 2025 (Tommy John) & fall to Yankees 7-3 on June 1. Yamamoto struggles. Get full game recap & Phillips injury impact.
StatPro MLB Beat Reporter
Man, oh man, Dodger fans. Some Sundays are for sunshine and walk-off wins. June 1st, 2025, was decidedly *not* one of those. The Boys in Blue dropped the series finale to the Yankees, but that wasn't even the toughest pill to swallow. The news that ace reliever Evan Phillips is heading for Tommy John surgery, ending his season, truly stings.
Losing Evan Phillips to Tommy John surgery is a gut punch; his 2025 season is over, and the bullpen just got a whole lot thinner.
Just when you thought the bullpen was finding its groove, the Dodgers dropped a bombshell: Evan Phillips, arguably one of their most reliable arms, will undergo Tommy John surgery next Wednesday. That means he's done for 2025, and we're looking at a 12-18 month recovery. This is a massive blow, folks. Phillips has been a rock, and his absence will be felt deeply.
On the field, things didn't go much better. The Yankees, looking to avoid a sweep, came out swinging and handed the Dodgers a 7-3 loss in front of over 54,000 at Chavez Ravine. Yoshinobu Yamamoto had a rare off day, giving up 4 earned runs in just 3.2 innings with only 2 Ks. The Yanks jumped on him early and never really looked back, scoring in the first, third, fifth, and ninth innings. Our bats were pretty quiet too, managing only six hits. Will Smith (2-for-4, RBI) and James Outman (2-run double in the seventh) provided the only real sparks. Even Shohei Ohtani went hitless, as did the Yanks' Aaron Judge. Yankees starter Ryan Yarbrough kept our offense in check, allowing just one run over six frames. The loss drops us to 36-22, still a solid record, but a frustrating end to the homestand.
With Phillips out, the front office didn't waste any time trying to plug the holes. The Dodgers acquired righty Will Klein from the Seattle Mariners in exchange for minor league pitcher Joe Jacques (who never suited up for us in the bigs). Klein's got a 7.17 ERA in Triple-A this year and hasn't seen MLB action yet, so he's a bit of a project. To make room for him on the 40-man roster, Chris Stratton was designated for assignment – a tough break for him. In corresponding moves, we also saw right-hander Ryan Loutos recalled from the minors (he gave up 2 ER in an inning earlier this season), while Noah Davis was optioned down to create space on the active roster. It's clear the team is scrambling to find answers for a suddenly depleted relief corps.
So, yeah, not the Sunday update we were hoping for. Losing Phillips is a massive hurdle, the loss to the Yankees stings, and the bullpen is now a major question mark. The Dodgers' depth and the front office's savvy will be put to the ultimate test in the coming weeks. It's a long season, but days like these remind us that the road to October is rarely smooth. Let's hope the team can regroup and find some solutions, fast.
