Graterol overcame setback after setback to return late in the season, but was limited to just 10 total games on the mound in 2024
Coming off a 2023 season in which Brusdar Graterol was one of the more dominant relievers in the sport, expectations were incredibly high for the youngster to remain a key cog in the Dodgers bullpen.
Unfortunately for Graterol, the regular season did not go according to plan with those pesky shoulder issues coming back to bite him as the righty missed the vast majority of the year with shoulder inflammation.
What was in many ways a wait-and-see situation, we waited, waited, and waited a bit more until Graterol came back in early August against the Phillies. That initial comeback went about as awfully as it could, with Graterol suffering a pretty significant hamstring strain, needing help off the mound in a 6-2 loss.
What first looked like a season-ending injury only kept him out for a month, and he was able to return in the season’s final month, covering the scoreless ninth inning of a 6-3 loss against the Cubs in his return game on September 10.
At this point in time, even though the division race was open, the primary goal was to get Graterol in a good spot for postseason play. By all intents and purposes, the hard-throwing reliever seemed on his way to that with six hitless innings over his final five regular season games.
The setbacks would not let up, though. In the middle of this outstanding form, Graterol had to be shut down as the shoulder inflammation crept up once again, ending his regular season in the final week, and it kept the right-hander inactive for the NLDS and NLCS.
Skipping ahead to the World Series, a worthy replacement came in right as the Dodgers lost a big weapon with Evan Phillips out of the roster set to play in The Fall Classic. Graterol was able to cover some key innings at the most important point of the season.
2024 particulars
Age: 26
Stats: 7 G, 7⅓ IP, 2.45 ERA, 2 BB, 7 K; 3 postseason games, 2⅓ IP, 3.86 ERA, 4 BB, 1 K
Salary: $2.7 million
Game of the year
Relying on Graterol’s outstanding ability, Dave Roberts thrust him into a very dangerous spot in Game 1 of the World Series, with the Dodgers trailing by one run in the seventh inning and the top of the order coming up for the Yankees. Aaron Judge managed a two-out single, but nothing came of it as the Dodgers kept things close for a late comeback.
That inning even included Graterol’s smooth, barehanded stab of a Gleyber Torres comebacker:
Games 3 and 5 didn’t go as smoothly for Graterol, getting into a bit of trouble against the same heavy hitters for the Yanks. However, in both times other relievers came on to bail him out. Alex Vesia in Game 3 and Blake Treinen in Game 5.
Roster status
Graterol had surgery on November 14 to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder, and will be out until the second half of the 2025 season. With four years, 167 days of service time, Graterol is eligible for salary arbitration.