Rockies Place Promising Young Pitcher on IL with Elbow Injury
The Colorado Rockies announced a flurry of roster moves on Friday. The most notable one is an ominous diagnosis of an elbow sprain for starter Chase Dollander, landing him on the 15-Day IL.
Dollander, 24, was removed from his start on Thursday after just one inning. The team later announced a vague diagnosis of arm tightness, but the tell-tale signs of an elbow injury were there. On Friday, after Dollander underwent imaging on his arm, the Rockies announced that he had suffered an elbow sprain, which usually indicates that a ligament has either been stretched or torn completely.
The University of Tennessee product was enjoying a breakout year for the Rockies, posting a 3-3 record and a 3.89 ERA through 44.0 innings of work. In comparison, he struggled to a 2-12 record with a 6.52 ERA and 1.55 WHIP last season.
The Colorado Rockies announced today the following transactions:
— Rockies Club Information (@RockiesClubInfo) May 15, 2026
-Placed INF/OF Tyler Freeman on the paternity list.
-Placed RHP Chase Dollander on the 15-day injured list (right elbow strain).
-Recalled OF Sterlin Thompson from Triple-A Albuquerque.
-Recalled LHP Sammy Peralta…
After having his workload limited to start the year, the Rockies unleashed Dollander over the past month. He pitched five innings or more in each of his last five starts before being pulled on Thursday against the Pittsburgh Pirates. During that stretch of five games, Dollander allowed just nine earned runs in 28.4 innings, with six of those coming in one game against the Atlanta Braves.
Taking Dollander's place on the roster will be left-hander Sammy Peralta, who was claimed off waivers from the Milwaukee Brewers on April 4th. The southpaw spent last season in the Los Angeles Angels organization and has appeared in 30 MLB games, posting a 2-1 record and a 5.12 ERA in 45.2 innings.
Chase Dollander exited his start today in the 2nd inning with an apparent injury.
— Just Baseball (@JustBB_Media) May 14, 2026
He was shaking his arm out after this pitch.pic.twitter.com/iIdwbG48ad
Colorado has never been an easy place to be a pitcher, but Dollander has done decently well in neutralizing teams at Coors Field. He has a 4.60 ERA in 15.2 home innings, compared to a 3.49 ERA in 28.1 innings on the road. But teams have actually posted a lower wOBA against Dollander at home, and he has allowed only one home run at Coors Field compared to five on the road.
The Rockies will be hopeful that the injury isn't season-ending for their young star pitcher, although the early signs appear to be leading down the road towards Tommy John surgery. For now, Dollander will likely get further testing done on his elbow, but Rockies fans should prepare to be without the young starter for the foreseeable future.
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This story was originally published May 15, 2026 at 2:44 PM.