Dodgers News: Dave Roberts Not Thrilled with State of Starting Rotation

It’s no secret that pitching hasn’t gone according to plan for the Los Angeles Dodgers this year.

Long a source of stability and dependability for the last decade and through the franchise’s history, the Dodgers now sit 22nd in MLB in team ERA with a 4.51 mark after starting pitcher Michael Grove surrendered eight runs over six innings in LA’s 9-0 series finale loss to the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday.

The Dodgers’ rotation has had a plethora of issues in 2023, whether that’d be Julio Urias missing time with a groin injury and coming back to struggle upon his return, Clayton Kershaw going down with shoulder soreness in the midst of a great individual campaign, or the team having to rely on a patchwork rotation consisting of rookies Bobby Miller and Emmet Sheehan.

There’s no getting around it. The team is very much winning in spite of their starting five, and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts voiced his displeasure after the blowout loss against the Reds.

“Not sustainable,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “We always have room to improve on the pitching side. So we’re gonna go with who we have until we have more when and if we do. … We’re always trying to upgrade. But again, it still takes two teams to make a deal.”

via Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic

The NL West-leading Dodgers is indeed still looking to upgrade the rotation after acquiring Lance Lynn from the Chicago White Sox on Monday. Even though they lost out on targets Lucas Giolito, Jordan Montgomery, and Max Scherzer in recent days, there’s still a couple hurlers available that the Dodgers are linked to, including the St. Louis Cardinals Jack Flaherty and Mitch Keller of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Even though the future of the rotation remains a question mark with the MLB trade deadline set for Tuesday at 3 PM, one thing is for certain.

The Dodgers do need to upgrade the rotation, or they risk falling flat down the stretch of the season and into the playoffs.

LA’s lineup has been one of the best this season as they’ve averaged close to six runs per game. But there are going to be days when the team will need to rely on what so far has been a poor rotation. The five they have at this moment may be working well enough now, but it won’t be in October. And they need to make another trade soon because Dave Roberts is correct.

The state of the rotation is not sustainable, and it’s time for the front office to fix that problem.

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