Scott Kazmir leaves start with tightness in his left hip

SCOTTSDALE — Dodgers pitcher Scott Kazmir exited his start on Monday against the Rockies after just one pitch in the second inning, with tightness in his left hip.

As of now, there is no MRI scheduled, but the Dodgers will reevaluate the left-hander on Tuesday

Kazmir threw a total of 14 pitches, 10 for strikes, in his second start of the Cactus League, but after throwing a ball to Ian Desmond to open the second inning Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and a team trainer went to the mound.

The tightness was first felt before the game.

"I didn't know about it until after that first inning,” manager Dave Roberts said. “Obviously he felt good enough to start the game. He sort of wanted to keep going, but it didn't make much sense to us.”

The Dodgers let Kazmir start the second inning, but pulled the plug after one pitch, an 85-mph cut fastball per MLB Gameday. Roberts estimated Kazmir was 5-6 mph where he should be at this point.

"He thought it was going to loosen up, but it just stayed the same,” Roberts said.

Hip problems were among the myriad of maladies Kazmir dealt with in 2016, the first season of his three-year contract signed before last season. Kazmir also had problems with his intercostal muscles and his neck, so much so that he couldn’t fully turn his head toward home plate during his delivery. He was ultimately shut down in September with thoracic spinal inflammation.

The hip issue came up during Kazmir’s offseason training as well, as described by Andy McCullough of the LA Times in February:

In January, one of his trainers at Dynamic Sports Training in Houston connected him with Casey Ho, a chiropractor who specializes in acupuncture and was part of the medical staff for the U.S. taekwondo team at the Rio Olympics. Ho noticed that Kazmir utilized his quadriceps more than his gluteus muscles, reducing the flexibility of his hips.

Ho prescribed acupuncture and rounds of chiropractic adjustment. He talked to Kazmir about preventive exercises. The education opened Kazmir’s eyes. “He was just dumbfounded, really, because he didn’t know all those things worked together,” Ho said.

Kazmir threw 1⅔ innings in his first start of the spring last Wednesday.