Chad Billingsley’s sore elbow sounds a lot like his last one

This all seems very familiar, which is not the worst news, but it’s not good news, either.

Chad Billingsley left Friday’s game in the middle of the fourth inning when his right elbow barked on an inside cutter to Miami’s Rob Brantly.

Brantly ended up doubling, and then when Billingsley fell behind 2-0 to pinch-hitter Gorkys Hernandez, the elbow still not right, his night came to a close.

“It’s no time to take chances,” said Manager Don Mattingly.

The Dodgers termed it a tender elbow, which is pretty close to the “right elbow pain” they listed as the cause for placing him on the 15-day disabled list last month.

Billingsley had an MRI exam after the game that he said showed elbow inflammation. When he had an MRI last month on the elbow, it showed inflammation.

All very familiar.

“It seems to be the same thing as it was before, but still it’s hard to tell, it’s so early,” Billingsley said. “It just happened. We’ll see how it feels tomorrow.”

So Billingsley could come out of this fine and not miss a start, or be looking at a return engagement to the DL.

That would be an unpleasant scenario for a Dodgers team that was quickly getting used to a rejuvenated Billingsley, who had won six consecutive decisions entering Friday, every start since coming off the disabled list.

The Dodgers are on the verge of completing a blockbuster trade for Red Sox first baseman Adrian Gonzalez, and included in the nine-player deal is Boston right-hander Josh Beckett.

It’s depth they might need more than they originally considered.

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