Zack Greinke will undergo surgery to stabilize his left clavicle Saturday after the brawl that injured the Dodgers right-hander put him out of action for at least eight weeks.
The bad news came after Greinke was examined in Los Angeles Friday by Dr. Neal ElAttrache.
ElAttrache and Dr. John Itamura, the Dodgers team physicians, will perform the surgery at White Memorial Hospital in Los Angeles. In the procedure, a rod will be placed in Greinke's clavicle to stabilize and align the fracture.
The procedure will keep Greinke from throwing until possibly Labor Day, and he is unlikely to get clearance to even consider serious rehab until late June, according to a surgeon familiar with the procedure.
Greinke was injured Thursday in the bench-clearing melee that broke out at Petco Park after he hit the Padres’ Carlos Quentin with a 3-2 pitch in the sixth inning.
Quentin rushed the mound, and Greinke took his blow along his left shoulder and arm.
Quentin was ejected from the game and faces a suspension that isn’t likely to keep him out of action as long as Greinke – something that has left a bad taste with the Dodgers.
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“He should not play a game before Greinke can pitch,” Mattingly told reporters after Thursday’s game. “If he plays a game before Greinke pitches, something is wrong.”
Greinke and Quentin have a history dating back to when both played in the American League – when Greinke evidently hit Quentin on more than one occasion.
After the game, though, Greinke denied that had intentionally thrown at Quentin.
“I never thought about hitting him on purpose,” Greinke said. “He always seems to think that I’m hitting him on purpose, but that’s not the case. That’s all I have to say about it.”
Had Quentin said anything to Greinke during their collision, which is when the Dodger pitcher believes he broke his collarbone?
“I’m not really talking about this,” Greinke told reporters. “I’ve said what I’m going to say to you guys, and that’s all. I’m not really getting into details with it.”
