Brett Anderson slated for MRI after injuring Achilles vs. Braves

ATLANTA -- Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Brett Anderson left Tuesday night's 4-3 loss to the Atlanta Braves in the third inning with irritation in the area of his left Achilles tendon.

The Dodgers thought they would be putting Anderson on the disabled list when they left the stadium Tuesday night, but his strained left Achilles tendon was feeling good enough Wednesday morning that they decided to wait a day before making that call.

Anderson was en route to get an MRI on Wednesday morning.

"I'm pretty concerned with the state of the rotation at this point. We've had injuries, and we're getting deeper and deeper into it," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said Tuesday night. "As consistent as Brett has been, we're kind of counting on him to be that guy throwing six or seven innings, keeping us in the game. Obviously we'll see the MRI, see where he's at."

Anderson, 27, said he first felt the injury while fielding Andrelton Simmons' comebacker in the first inning. He said it tightened up as the game went on and that he was limiting his drive off the mound, thus affecting his command.

"It's one of the few parts of my body I haven't hurt before, ever, so I don't really know if it's anything major," Anderson said Tuesday.

Anderson exited after charging off the mound and bending awkwardly to try to field Jonny Gomes' chopper to his right. He dropped it, then kicked it into foul ground, allowing Gomes to reach on an infield single. Anderson bent down to feel the area behind his left ankle, then beckoned Dodgers trainers onto the field.

He said he did not feel a popping sensation and that trainers, after feeling the tendon, believe it remains intact.

Dodgers general manager Farhan Zaidi acknowledged this injury to Anderson -- coupled with season-ending injuries to Brandon McCarthy and Hyun-Jin Ryu -- will motivate the team to try to consummate a deal as soon as possible. The Dodgers would ideally add a starting pitcher by this weekend because they'll need to cover Saturday's and Sunday's starts.

"I don't know that we could ratchet up our search for starting pitching any more than we already are, but certainly this kind of emphasizes the need to add," Zaidi said.

This is the first season since 2010 in which Anderson has pitched more than 100 innings. His myriad injuries are as varied as a torn elbow ligament and a broken bone in his hand, an injury he suffered while batting last season.

The Dodgers were already searching high and low for a starting pitcher before the July 31 trade deadline. In addition to the losses of McCarthy and Ryu, Brandon Beachy has been ineffective in his two starts since coming back from his second Tommy John surgery.

The team already had a vacancy to pitch Saturday's game against the Mets in New York. Mattingly had said earlier Tuesday that the game could be started by minor leaguer Zach Lee, a pitcher the Dodgers trade for or someone else. He said, however, that he did not think the front office was close to acquiring a pitcher via trade.

Anderson is 5-5 with a 3.33 ERA.