Chad Billingsley, with his elbow basically hanging by a thread and ready to explode at any moment, has been placed on the 15-day DL with right elbow pain. The move is retroactive to April 16 and it marks his second stint on the DL in the young season.

#Dodgers place RHP Chad Billingsley on 15-day DL (right elbow pain) retroactive to 4/16 and recall RHP Stephen Fife to make today’s start.

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 21, 2013

Billingsley underwent a MRI exam yesterday. Results still haven’t been reviewed by #DrNealElAttrache.

— Dylan Hernandez (@dylanohernandez) April 21, 2013

Billingsley said the feeling in his elbow isn’t the same as last year.This elbow pain didn’t happen on 1 pitch like last year

— David Vassegh (@THEREAL_DV) April 21, 2013

While it was an admirable attempt to help the team, at least in theory, he really should have gotten Tommy John surgery last August/September.

Stephen Fife was recalled to replace Bills and started Sunday in his place.

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Hanley Ramirez continues to progress with his rehab, though Don Mattingly doesn’t foresee a rehab assignment for another week or so.

Dodgers shortstop Hanley Ramirez took live early batting practice at Camden Yards before Friday night’s game and hit with power, but manager Don Mattingly said a Minor League rehab assignment is still at least a week away.

“It’s still a little sore in the joint, three weeks without moving it,” said Ramirez, who appeared ginger on his throws to first base.

“What he’s been able to do has shocked all of us,” said Mattingly. “Taking BP, his swing is like normal. Is he able to do that without the brace? There’s still healing to be done. It seems his throwing, he still has trouble with the feel making all his throws. He asked if he could DH tonight and I couldn’t hardly argue. I wouldn’t mind it.”

The Dodgers are pleased with the power Ramirez has shown in BP, and the fact that he’s healing ahead of schedule bodes well for a team with offensive vortexes at both 3B and SS.

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Chris Capuano hit the 15-day DL with a left calf strain suffered during the Carlos Quentin/Zack Greinke incident two Thursdays ago.

#Dodgers place LHP Chris Capuano on 15-day DL (left calf strain); recall C Tim Federowicz from @abqtopes.

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 17, 2013

Capuano received treatment between the original injury and his spot-start on Tuesday, before re-injuring it during the game while running to cover first base.

The left calf strain that put Dodgers pitcher Chris Capuano on the disabled list on Wednesday originally surfaced on Thursday night during the benches-clearing incident in San Diego that sidelined Zack Greinke.

Capuano said he felt tightness before that game and felt it worsen while sprinting in from the bullpen during the fracas that was triggered when Greinke hit Padres outfielder Carlos Quentin with a pitch.

Capuano said he thought the injury had responded enough to four days of treatment to allow him to start Tuesday night in Greinke’s place, only for the muscle to partially tear when he sprinted off the mound to cover first base in the second inning.

Chris had an MRI and received an injection of platelet-rich plasma in the affected area on Thursday.

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Where is Yasiel Puig? On the DL.

The answer to why Dodgers outfield prospect Yasiel Puig didn’t play for Double-A Chattanooga on Friday night was the simplest of sorts. No, he wasn’t en route to Baltimore to join the Dodgers. Instead, Puig was placed on the seven-day disabled list with a sprained left thumb, per Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register.

While this should serve to blunt the madness surrounding his name, he desperately needs the plate appearances.

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Down on the farm, five Dodgers got healthy and three more hit the DL.

RHP Matt Shelton, C Pratt Maynard, and OF Devin Shines were placed on the 7-day DL, while RHP Steve Ames, RHP Juan Noriega, C Jan Vazquez, SS Ozzie Martinez, and OF Pat Stover were reinstated from the DL.

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Greg Zakwin is the founder of the site Plaschke Thy Sweater Is Argyle. Follow him on Twitter @ArgyledPlaschke.

While Don Mattingly believes Matt Kemp‘s shoulder may be a mental hurdle he’ll have to get past, he and the Dodgers staff are not concerned about it affecting Kemp physically, as the injury hasn’t cropped back up after off-season surgery and there have been no lingering side effects.

“He may be thinking about [the shoulder], but it doesn’t seem like it any more,” manager Don Mattingly said before Tuesday’s game against the Giants. “I think when we assessed Spring Training, we felt like that was one of the hurdles that we crossed that was successful.”

The injury will likely temper Kemp’s power early in the season, but hopefully his shoulder responds better than Adrian Gonzalez‘s did after a similar injury during his time in Boston.

It’s a situation worth monitoring, but it certainly doesn’t seem worthy of panic.

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Chad Billingsley had a successful rehab start in Rancho and is in line to start in the bigs on Wednesday.

Chad Billingsley allowed four runs in four innings in his minor league rehab assignment with Class-A Rancho Cucamonga on Thursday night, but more importantly the Dodgers right-hander is healthy and his curve ball was unhindered by the contusion on his right index finger. Billingsley’s next start will likely by Wednesday in San Diego against the Padres.

“My curve was a lot sharper. In the last outing I was throwing 50-foot curve balls. Tonight they were more on top of the plate, I got a double play ball out of one. It was definitely worth it coming back here,” Billingsley said. “I’m ready for the next outing.”

Bills’ finger was fine and he was able to throw his curve.

“It went well. I accomplished everything I needed to to get ready for my next start,” Billingsley said on Friday at Dodger Stadium. “I’ve got no issues with the finger. I’m anxious to get back out there, compete and win some ballgames.”

It’s something to watch for during his start this week, for sure.

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Ted Lilly went six innings in a minor-league rehab start.

Lilly is expected to make at least one more rehab start before he’s ready to start in the Major Leagues, and then the Dodgers must find room for him. Manager Don Mattingly earlier said Lilly is not a likely candidate for the bullpen, where the Dodgers already have stashed starting pitchers Chris Capuano and Aaron Harang.

Not shockingly, Lilly allowed a few dingers.

The odds are still good that Lilly will be dealt or released when he’s healthy enough to return, as the Dodgers already have three superior lefties in the pen and could get Scott Elbert back at some point around the middle of this season.

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The Dodgers placed minor leaguers Juan Abreu, Juan Noriega, Matt Palmer, Mario Santiago, Steve Cilladi, Jan Vazquez, Pedro Guerrero, Casio Grider, Ozzie Martinez, Brian Cavazos-Galvez, Jeremy Moore, Pat Stover, and Joey Winker on the 7-day DL.

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Greg Zakwin is the founder of the site Plaschke Thy Sweater Is Argyle. Follow him on Twitter @ArgyledPlaschke.

The Albuquerque Isotopes and Chattanooga Lookouts had the best week in the Dodgers minor league system, both winning five games this week. The ‘Topes scored the most runs this week with 54, while the Great Lakes Loons gave up the fewest with 24.

The Arizona League Dodgers, a team that had been rolling, had one game in which it gave up 20 runs. The lowlight of the week for sure.

With the trade deadline fast approaching, some of these guys could be making their last appearances on this list.

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Albuquerque Isotopes (5-2)

Runs Scored: 54
Runs Allowed: 40

Player Of The Week

Josh Fields – 3B

Fields has been one of the Pacific Coast League‘s hottest hitters, and that continued this week: 10-for-23 (.435) with two home runs, four doubles, nine RBI, nine runs scored, and four walks. Fields is up to .345/.411/.525 on the season, and if the Dodgers don’t find an upgrade at third base he might actually get a shot at the hot corner. This was his third award in four weeks and his fourth overall.

Pitcher Of The Week

Stephen Fife – RHP

Fife had the best week of any Isotopes pitcher despite making his MLB debut this week (6 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 1 K). He had an even better outing for Albuquerque after he was optioned: 7 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 12 K. It was his best outing of the season and there might be some hope for him as a swingman in the majors. This is Fife’s third award of the season.

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Chattanooga Lookouts (5-1)

Runs Scored: 37
Runs Allowed: 28

Player Of The Week

Rafael Ynoa – 2B

Believe it or not, this is Ynoa’s third award of the season. He went 11-for-23 (.478) with a double, four RBI, two walks, and a stolen base. He’s raised his season triple slash to .305/.375/.366. He has decent on-base skills but zero power.

Pitcher Of The Week

Allen Webster – RHP

The man who could be traded for Ryan Dempster, Webster had himself quite an outing on Friday: 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 10 K. He’s showing why he’s one of the Dodgers top prospects after a terribly slow start to the season. He’s getting better and stronger as the season goes on and he should only be traded for an impact player — definitely not a rental like Dempster.

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Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (2-5)

Runs Scored: 17
Runs Allowed: 34

Player Of The Week

Scott Wingo – 2B

Wingo had himself quite a week for the Quakes: 10-for-24 (.417) with three doubles and four runs scored. He has a good eye, drawing 41 walks in 84 games, and plays a decent second base. This is his third honor this season. He needs to finish the season strong to get on the prospect radar.

Pitcher Of The Week

Andres Santiago – RHP

Santiago is on fire, capturing his third straight award and fourth on the season by having another good outing: 7 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 K. His ERA is high (4.48), but his peripherals continue to improve (1.19 WHIP, 7.7 H/9, 10.3 K/9, 3.46 K/BB, 3.05 FIP). He’s the Quakes best pitcher right now.

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Great Lakes Loons (4-2)

Runs Scored: 29
Runs Allowed: 24

Player Of The Week

O’Koyea Dickson – 1B/DH

Dickson has been noticeably absent from this list for more than a month because of a horrifically bad slump to start the second half. However, it seems he might be back on track after going 8-for-25 (.320) with a home run, two doubles, seven RBI, and three runs scored. He still owns a respectable .842 OPS in the Midwest League. I’d still like to see him promoted to Rancho Cucamonga.

Pitcher Of The Week

Gustavo Gomez – RHP

Gomez makes his first appearance on this list, which is a little surprising. He had a solid outing on Saturday: 5 2/3 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 9 K. The 21-year-old has struggled a lot with the Loons, posting a 5.92 ERA and a .291 BAA. It’d be nice to see him finish the season on a strong note.

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Ogden Raptors (2-4)

Runs Scored: 28
Runs Allowed: 37

Player Of The Week

Pat Stover – OF

The Dodgers 40th-round pick this year, Stover could end up being a steal. Oh, and he had a solid week for the Raptors: 6-for-17 (.353) with a home run, three RBI, two runs, and two walks. He owns a .375/.452/.438 triple slash in his first 21 professional games.

Pitcher Of The Week

Matt Laney – LHP

Laney, who began the season with Great Lakes, had the best week of any Raptor pitcher: 6 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K. He’s actually pitched worse since going to Ogden.

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Arizona League Dodgers (1-4)

Runs Scored: 17
Runs Allowed: 39

Player Of The Week

Jesmuel Valentin – SS

The Dodgers 2012 second-round pick makes his first appearance on this list by going 4-for-13 (.308) with a home run, three RBI, four runs scored, and three walks. Valentin got off to a slow start but is up to a decent .253/.366/.400 triple slash in his debut season. He’s scored 19 runs and has 19 hits.

Pitcher Of The Week

Lindsey Caughel – RHP

The Dodgers 2012 23rd-round pick had the best week of the bunch, which isn’t saying much: 4 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 K. He had a decent game, but no one else had a week worth noting for the team.

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Dominican Summer League Dodgers (3-3)

Runs Scored: 32
Runs Allowed: 28

Player Of The Week

Melvin Santana – 2B

Santana has taken over as the team’s best player by earning his third consecutive POTW award. Santana went 6-for-16 (.375) with a double, four runs scored, and three stolen bases. He owns a .313/.387/.507 line with 38 runs scored.

Pitcher Of The Week

Wander Beras – LHP

Beras, like Santana, earns his third consecutive POTW award for the DSL Dodgers by having another fantastic outing: 6 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 10 K. He’s struck out 73 hitters in 56 1/3 innings, but he’s 23 years old at the lowest level of the minors.