Scott Elbert to pitch for Triple-A Albuquerque Tuesday & Wednesday

LOS ANGELES -- Dodgers relief pitcher Scott Elbert threw a bullpen session at Dodger Stadium on Sunday morning and will head next to Triple-A Albuquerque, the next stop on his minor league rehabilitation assignment.

Elbert is scheduled to pitch on Tuesday and Wednesday for the Isotopes, who will be in El Paso. It is the first time Elbert will have pitched in a game setting on back-to-back days in his rehab assignment.

This was a key point in Elbert's rehab in 2013, with included eight minor league games coming off two arthroscopic surgeries on his left elbow. But after the first time he threw in back-to-back games, for Double-A Chattanooga last year, Elbert felt something in his elbow and was shut down. He ultimately needed Tommy John surgery, which he had in June.

Manager Don Mattingly watched Elbert's bullpen session Sunday and saw him pitch twice in Arizona the last time the Dodgers were in Phoenix, and said he likes the progress he has seen from the left-hander.

"The fact that he's bouncing back and feeling good is good for him," Mattingly said. "I'm sure there are all kind of road blocks mentally with not having pitched, but he has looked good so far."

Elbert has allowed four runs, including two home runs over 3⅓ innings in his four minor league rehab games to date, with rookie-level Ogden and Class-A Rancho Cucamonga. The appearance in Ogden was his first in nearly a decade and was four days shy of the 10th anniversary of his professional debut in the same stadium.

"I wasn't so much nervous for that, but more that I hadn't pitched in a game in a year and a half," Elbert said on Sunday.

The 28-year-old left-hander (Elbert turns 29 in August) last pitched for the Dodgers on Aug. 26, 2012. Over 2011-2012 he was a key member of the bullpen, putting up a 2.32 ERA in 90 games with 63 strikeouts and 27 walks in 66 innings. During those two years he held left-handed batters to hitting .232/.305/.319.

Elbert's rehab assignment, which began on June 18, can last up to 30 days, so the Dodgers will have a roster decision to make right around the All-Star break. Elbert is out of options.