(Jon SooHoo/Los Angeles Dodgers)

by Rowan Kavner

As reinforcements near a return from the disabled list, the Dodgers received positive news about their injured ace.

Clayton Kershaw said his MRI came back “pretty clean” and he hopes to start playing catch soon after going on the disabled list Sunday with left biceps tendonitis.

“I don’t think I’ve ever had an arm problem before,” Kershaw said. “I think this is the first shoulder MRI I’ve ever had. So, been fortunate as far as that goes…Hopefully, shouldn’t be too long.”

Manager Dave Roberts wasn’t sure what day Kershaw would start to play catch, but he also said he could see that happening this week. Roberts said the MRI showed no structural damage to Kershaw’s arm and that he’s “in a really good state and feeling pretty optimistic.”

Kershaw has a 2.86 ERA this year with 48 strikeouts in 44 innings. He said it wasn’t until toward the end of his last start, when he allowed two runs in six innings to the Diamondbacks to start the month, that he started feeling the pain in his arm.

He tried to throw in Monterrey but shut it down when he knew his bullpen session would be impossible.

Kershaw said he’s physically felt great all year and it may just be a fluke injury, but he added he has some ideas on what he can do to get better trying things out mechanically with pitching coach Rick Honeycutt. He said he doesn’t feel it has anything to do with deterioration from years of pitching.

“Ultimately, I try to do the best I can to prevent injury and stay healthy,” Kershaw said. “Sometimes, it’s unavoidable.

Manager Dave Roberts also said there are aspects of Kershaw’s mechanics the pitcher has already been working through with Honeycutt.

“It’s something over the last few weeks they’ve been trying to figure out,” Roberts said. “With pitching, Honey’s obviously the expert on it, certain things can get you out of whack a little bit. There’s certain things I think they’ve been trying to fine-tune.”

Roberts said the results of all the scans worked out as well as the Dodgers could’ve hoped for.

As they wait for their ace to return, Yasiel Puig is on the mend on a rehab assignment with Single-A Rancho Cucamonga, while Logan Forsythe and Justin Turner aren’t far behind. Roberts said he expects both Forysthe and Turner to return on the Dodgers’ next road trip.

Turner took grounders and batting practice with the Dodgers on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the Dodgers will bring pitchers in for a simulated game for Turner.

“With him, once he checks the boxes of the simulated at-bats, we can send him out,” Roberts said.

Turner said he’s eyeing the start of the road trip in Miami as a return date, but he’s not sure at this point if he’ll be cleared that early.