Dodgers: Mad Dog Expects the Pitching Shortage to Be LA’s Downfall This Season
The Los Angeles Dodgers are still favorites to make a deep run. That is despite all that they’ve lost this offseason and the lack of replacements/star talent they’ve acquired in the winter.
Still, LA remains favorites to win the NL West, according to vegasinsider.com, and they currently have the third-best odds to win the World Series, according to BetMGM.
Odds makers seem to still be high on the Dodgers until proven otherwise, but talking baseball head Chris ‘Mad Dog’ Russo said on MLB Network’s High Heat that he has the Dodgers falling short of the NLCS due to their lack of pitching right now.
As he said, we can’t hold him to these way-too-early predictions since they can change many times before the season starts and throughout the season.
However, Mad Dog’s concerns about the Dodgers are valid. Their pitching doesn’t look as impressive on paper as in years past. They lost Tyler Anderson, who had a career year with LA in 2022, and Walker Buehler will most likely miss the 2023 season dealing with Tommy John from June 2022.
The Dodgers could be aggressive in trying to trade for a star pitcher before the trade deadline. However, there is also a good possibility that someone from the rotation will be lights out like we’ve seen in years past in the Dodgers pitching department.
Anderson and Gonsolin were those guys last year, and we all know pitching coach Mark Prior has become known for revitalizing pitchers.
LA signed righty Noah Syndergaard in December, and he will be a part of the starting rotation. If Prior can work his magic, Syndergaard could also benefit from being a part of the Dodgers organization.
Even though the pitching doesn’t look promising at the moment, LA’s problems in the postseason have been their cold bats. The Boys in Blue couldn’t drive in a run last postseason to save their lives, and that’s been the case for most postseasons they’ve fallen short in.
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I’d say Dodger fans are more worried about timely hitting (and Roberts not messing it up) than the pitching staff.
All 5 starters have dominant stuff, the depth is mostly rookies, but they are likely to find at least one gem between Pepiot, Stone, and Miller. I think they are set up pretty well, and don’t be surprised if they pick up Ohtani, or some other ace type mis-season, if they need to.
I personally do not think there is a pitching shortage. Urias, Kershaw, Thor, Gonsolin, May, then
Pepiot, Grove,Stone,Miller,Jackson.
We’ll be fine!
I agree with the comments. Sportswriters and many fans want expensive free-agent acquisitions that spur clicks. Where do they think stars come from if not the Farm System? Stone has had a meteoric rise with great stuff and control. Miller has major stuff that simply needs some experience and control. Pepiot has said he learned a lot last year. I am fine with the pitching and the bullpen should be lights out.
I think Bellinger will do well in Chicago especially now that the shift is gone but his swing and miss at-bats hurt the offense. J Turner was terrible for 2/3 of the season.
Vargas accordingly to all the scouts and Dodger Management is a contact-generating machine. Outman has a ton of potential. They will miss T and J Turner but the offense at the end of the year has the potential to be more consistent throughout the line-up. I like this team for 95 wins and will make the playoffs. Once a team is in the playoffs it’s all about momentum. injuries a bit of luck and a bad call. I still do not believe the Dodgers will ever win another WS with Roberts in charge. Robert’s in-game pitching and substitutions cost them at least one game each series and when you are at parity you cannot win.