Dodgers News: Craig Kimbrel Still on the Roster Bubble
The Dodgers entered a brave new world on Friday, the world of first-round byes in the MLB postseason. Los Angeles, along with the Braves, Yankees, and Astros, are faced with the blessing and challenge of having five days off between the end of the regular season and the start of the Division Series. While the other eight playoff teams began their postseason journeys on Friday, the four top seeds are trying to rest and stay fresh at the same time.
For the Dodgers, that meant the first of a few intrasquad games for the players. And for team president Andrew Friedman and manager Dave Roberts, it meant talking to the media and finding new ways to not really say anything new.
Along those lines, Friedman was asked about reliever Craig Kimbrel, who came into the season as the closer and ended it with massive question marks not about his role finishing games but about his fitness for the postseason roster at all. After being dropped from the closer role for good, Kimbrel finished the season with four solid appearances in lower-leverage situations, leading to speculation that he might have re-earned a spot on the NLDS roster.
Not so fast, says Friedman.
Dodgers haven’t made a decision on whether Craig Kimbrel will be on the postseason roster, Andrew Friedman said.
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) October 7, 2022
Of course, the Dodgers might have already made the decision. Friedman and Roberts aren’t generally eager to give information any sooner than they have to. But there’s a good chance the Kimbrel decision is at least partly related to the health of Blake Treinen and/or Dustin May, both of whom are trying to get back from the injured list in time for the NLDS. As it stands, there are about six pitchers vying for the final two spots on the pitching staff.
Regardless of the reasoning, the Dodgers are likely to wait about as long as possible before publicly naming their roster, even if the players are informed earlier.
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