Dodgers’ Julio Urias to get shoulder examined; Yasiel Puig appeals MLB punishment for gesture

A fitful season for Dodgers pitcher Julio Urias took a concerning turn this week, and now the left-hander is headed back to Los Angeles so team doctor Neal ElAttrache can examine his sore left shoulder.

The triple-A Oklahoma City Dodgers placed Urias on the disabled list Wednesday. Urias mentioned to the medical staff that “he wasn’t feeling right” a few days ago, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. The team shut him down from throwing. When his condition did not approve, Urias was scheduled for his appointment.

“It’s a concern whenever you’re talking about a pitcher’s arm, especially the shoulder,” Roberts said. “But I think with Julio, I think we’ve gotten ahead of it. Hopefully it’s just inflammation where time will allow it to dissipate. But when you’re talking about the elbow or the shoulder, I think there’s some pause.”

After an encouraging debut in 2016, in which he became the first teenager to pitch for the Dodgers since Fernando Valenzuela, Urias has been sidetracked often this season. He came to spring training believing he was competing for a spot in the starting rotation, but the team elected to delay his start to the season to limit his innings.

Upon his arrival in the majors in late April, Urias failed to throw strikes on a consistent basis. He walked 14 batters and struck out 11. Before the team optioned him back to the minors near the end of May, Urias owned a 5.40 earned-run average.

The team prioritized his development over his potential ability for the big league club, hoping Urias could clean up deficiencies in his delivery facing lower-quality competition.

Urias appeared to find traction during an outing on June 10. He struck out eight batters and walked one in 5 2/3 innings. But soon after, his shoulder became an issue.

“It really hasn’t gotten a whole lot better,” Roberts said. “So we figured we’d go get a scan.”

Puig to appeal punishment

Dodgers outfielder Yasiel Puig received a one-game suspension for making an obscene gesture toward fans during Tuesday’s game against the Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field.

Puig chose to appeal the suspension, and was in the lineup Wednesday. The punishment also included an undisclosed fine.

Puig flashed his two middle fingers toward fans behind the plate after hitting a home run. He said afterward that four people were heckling him before and after the at-bat. Puig expressed contrition for having “stooped to their level,” he said Tuesday night.

Roberts spoke with Puig before Wednesday’s game.

“It was something that he wishes didn’t happen,” Roberts said. “It was a reaction of emotion on his part. Bad judgment. I just made it clear that I want to talk about all our players in the context of what they do on the field, not off the field. He understood how I felt. It won’t happen again.”

andy.mccullough@latimes.com

Twitter: @McCulloughTimes