Just like every season, especially in the Spring, things never turn out the way you think… especially due to injuries, and the Dodgers have quietly had quite a few on the pitching side. Here’s the short list of injuries that will shape the Dodger’s Opening Day Roster:
- Bobby Miller was a candidate until he ran his cranium into a 106 MPH line drive. That’s probably going to put him on the IL or at OKC to start the season.
- Evan Phillips (who is best friends with Tanner Scott) is close, but the Dodgers will likely slow-walk him on the IL for the first few weeks of the season.
- Michael Kopech is also experiencing problems… including forearm tightness, which is not good – we all know what that can mean.
- Michael Grove is likely a late bloomer who is disrespected by many Dodger fans but whose upside is considerable has some shoulder soreness and will be held out for a while.
- Edgardo Henriquez is a rookie who had a shot at making the roster, but he is in a walking boot for four to six weeks. The Dodgers aren’t saying what happened, but it was allegedly “off-the-field” and presumably did not involve putting his foot into his mouth!
We are pretty sure these pitchers will be in the bullpen:
- Tony Gonsolin or Dustin May (whoever is not in the rotation) (R)
- Anthony Banda (L)
- Alex Vesia (L)
- Ben Casparius (R)
- Blake Treinen (R)
- Tanner Scott (L)
- Kirby Yates (R)
By the Way, the Rotation will be:
- Blake Snell
- Yoshi Yamamoto
- Roki Susaki
- Tyler Glasnow
- Tony Gonsolin or Dustin May
That leaves one spot in the bullpen, and in my mind, the final spot comes down to two lefthanders: Justin Wrobleski and Jack Dreyer. I think it will be Dreyer for two reasons:
- Wrobleski needs to be in a rotation… and OKC will work.
- Dreyer has more movement on his fastball than any other pitcher in MLB – Vesia was #1 last year and Dreyer is even more filthy from the left side!
Jack Dreyer, welcome to MLB! BTW, he can solve a Rubik’s Cube in 20 seconds.
Dodgers MLB TOP 30 by Jim Callis
Discussion (24)
Disagree, not disagreeable
i don’t think the dodgers should trade Wrobleski! That dude has serious talent! seen his name tossed around in rumors, but i believe the dodgers will keep him. i just wish the organization could develop position players like they do pitchers! Will Smith is the best to come through the ranks in recent seasons. Lots of prospects but not a lot of mlb results. Rushing,Depaula,Hope, all hyped but not sure what they will be. After watching Kim this spring, he looks like he’s quite a ways from being a major league hitter. Speed and defense is there, but not so much at the plate. … Conforto looks like a great acquisition! I expect 25 and 85 from him this season! … My biggest concern is center field if Edman is going to play second. Pages is not the answer in center field! ….. Maybe they make a trade before they go to japan. … Anyone heard anything about Clayton?
You NEVER have enough pitching!
Geritt Cole is scheduled to undergo diagnostic tests on his right elbow, Jon Morosi of MLB Network reports.
“Cole surrendered six earned runs on five hits over 2.2 innings during his spring outing Thursday, and he said after the game that he was struggling with command — particularly of his fastball. The 34-year-old righty missed most of the first half of last season due to elbow trouble, and it seems like the Yankees are at least somewhat concerned those issues have resurfaced. More will be known regarding his status within the next several day”.
“The Los Angeles Dodgers made their third round of roster cuts following their Cactus League victory over the Seattle Mariners on Friday night, this time removing seven pitchers from Major League Spring Training.
The Dodgers reassigned left-handed pitchers Jackson Ferris, Joe Jacques and Jose E. Hernández and right-handers Sam Carlson, Jared Karros, Jack Little and Jose Rodriguez to Minor League camp. Their roster now stands at 45 players total as they work to trim it down to the 31-man travel roster for Tokyo and eventually the 26-man roster for Opening Day”.
I’m gonna take a huge gamble here.
Ohtani will pitch in Tokyo unless he doesn’t. Best I can do.
Book em
8:40 PM ET
Dodgers (98-64) ( 9-6)
Mariners (85-77) (5-9)
SP Matt Sauer R
0-0 .00 ERA
SP Emerson Hancock R
0-0 .00 ERA
Confirmed Lineup
2B Tommy Edman S
LF M. Conforto L
RF T. Hernandez R
CF E. Hernandez R
C A. Barnes R
3B Chris Taylor R
DH James Outman L
1B M. Chavis R
SS Hyeseong Kim L
24% Rain
54° Wind 6 mph R-L
My thinking is that as much as Sasaki and Yamamoto are stars in Japan, Ohtani is THE BIGGEST STAR! As a two-way player, he is unrivaled. That is why I think it is still possible he comes into a game with two outs and pitches to one batter. I am not saying it WILL happen… just saying it COULD happen. The crowd would love it.
My guess is Ohtani will be “100%” very very soon BUT Dodgers management wants to “preserve” him as much as possible for the post season.
The same with Glasnow and all the pitchers coming back from injury. HOPING to end up with a reliable rotation for the post season while still having a strong enough rotation to GET TO the post season.
David Vassegh
@THEREAL_DV
Andrew Friedman made it clear when he joined #DodgerTalk at DodgerFest Shohei Ohtani wouldn’t face hitters during spring training. Nothing changed.
Yes, the photo is of Jack Dreyer. Maybe you are more familiar with him and facial hair:
“Dodgers manager Dave Roberts revealed Thursday that Ohtani will not face hitters as a pitcher before going to Japan so that he can ramp up his preparations as a hitter, Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic reports.
Ohtani threw his last bullpen Feb. 25. He has continued to playing catch according to manager Dave Roberts, but they are giving him a pause from ramping up his pitching so he can intensify his hitting. Roberts also talked about May as a potential time for Ohtani’s return to pitching, but added that they “just don’t know” when the NL MVP will be able to take the mound, Bill Plunkett of The Orange County Register reports”.
So much for Ohtani pitching in Japan
The Los Angeles Dodgers have decided to halt Shohei Ohtani’s throwing program, according to Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times.
The Dodgers have reassigned five players — catchers Griffin Lockwood-Powell and Chris Okey, as well as infielders Alex Freeland, Austin Gauthier, and Kody Hoese — to minor league camp.
With the latest round of cuts, the Dodgers now have 52 players in Major League camp.
Love the picture of Koufax and Kershaw. Must of been taken when Kershaw first came up because he’s wearing his former number 54.
Can someone tell me who the picture on this post is please – number 89?
He might have the most sloping shoulders I’ve ever seen!!!
Diego Cartaya with the Twins this Spring 5AB 1BB 5K. Not ready for prime time or will he ever be ready for prime time?
Here is the Dodger’s roster for the Spring Breakout game against the Cubs. The Dodgers’ prospects take on their Cubs counterparts on March 13 at Camelback Ranch. First pitch is set for 6:05 p.m. PDT/MST.
PITCHERS
Jackson Ferris, LHP, No. 4 (MLB No. 70)
Hyun-Seok Jang, RHP, No. 17
Jose Rodriguez, RHP, No. 29
Chris Campos, RHP, NR
Carson Hobbs, RHP, NR
Ronan Kopp, LHP, NR
Kelvin Ramirez, RHP, NR
Lucas Wepf, RHP, NR
Reynaldo Yean, RHP, NR
CATCHERS
Carlos Rojas, C, NR
Yeiner Fernandez, C, NR
Nelson Quiroz, C, NR
INFIELDERS
Emil Morales, SS, No. 7
Kellon Lindsey, SS, No. 8
Joendry Vargas, SS, No. 12
Chase Harlan, 3B, No. 20
Logan Wagner, 1B/3B, No. 26
Kyle Nevin, 3B, NR
Nico Perez, SS, NR
Joe Vetrano, 1B, NR
OUTFIELDERS
Josue De Paula, OF, No. 3 (MLB No. 40)
Zyhir Hope, OF, No. 6 (MLB No. 74)
Eduardo Quintero, OF, No. 9
Kendall George, OF, No. 15
Ching-Hsien Ko, OF, No. 16
Mike Sirota, OF, No. 21
Jaron Elkins, OF, No. 24
MLB.TV, MLB.com, MLB App, Gameday
I predict that the Dodgers “MIGHT” let Ohtani come in and pitch to a batter or two in Japan.
3:05 PM ET
Rangers (78-84) (5-7)
Dodgers (98-64) (8-6)
SP David Buchanan R
0-0 .00 ERA
SP Dustin May R
0-0 .00 ERA
Confirmed Lineup
DH S. Ohtani L
SS Mookie Betts R
1B F. Freeman L
RF T. Hernandez R
3B Max Muncy L
C Will Smith R
LF M. Conforto L
CF Tommy Edman S
2B Miguel Rojas R
67° Wind 18 mph out
Pretty close to a Dodger starting lineup
The Roster we start with won’t be the roster we end with!
CT3 aint going anywhere folks, and I am fine with that.
Is he the CT3 of 17…no.
But he is still a good MLB player that cant play just about any position and play it well. I look for a good year from CT3….
Jared Karros was pretty impressive yesterday. 2 innings plus one batter. In fact the Dodger pen as a whole was impressive. Knack, not so much. He still leaves too many pitches right in the middle of the plate. Jacques has some nasty stuff from the left side too. Rosario with 2nd spring homer, tying Bote and Freddie.
Agree on pitching staff. I have it same way, although they could substitute a short-term NRI in Dreyer’s spot until one of the rehabbing guys is ready.
Grove is a former 2nd rounder who is now 28 and has pretty terrible career numbers. I always liked him, as his delivery & stuff reminded me of Buehler’s but he has to prove it on the field.
Such a strong team. So much depth.
Too much?
David Bote has been the spring “MVP,” according to Dave Roberts. But DodgerBlue reports that if Bote doesn’t make the roster, he can opt out of his minor league deal and sign elsewhere.
Some teams are probably hovering.
So this raises a question…
Would the Dodgers simply release Taylor to make room for Bote? That would be a lot of salary to eat. Or could the desire to keep Bote (no kid at 31) prompt a trade?
I keep thinking a team like the O’s would be a good match because they need pitching and have a surplus of young hitters. What other teams could match up?
Callis doesn’t even list Dreyer in the Dodger’s top 30 prospects. That’s how deep we are in pitching in the minors.