Dodgers News: Dave Roberts Reveals Potential Opener Options in Postseason Game
With the way that the Dodgers starting rotation has shaken out as the year has gone on, LA is going to be forced into using a more unconventional approach in the postseason. They will be relying on a few young pitchers, and likely even using some openers to start games.
This isn’t how the team normally has done things in the past, but they are making the best of a bad situation. LA has talented pitchers to use, but their normal strength has become a true weakness for this team.
However, in the postseason, it’s all about getting outs. And how those outs come by really don’t matter in the long run.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts provided some clarity on who some of the potential options could be if they decide to go with an opener.
He said Caleb Ferguson and Brusdar Graterol “would be at the top of the list” to be an opener in October. Additionally, he said Shelby Miller could be an option.
Both Ferguson and Graterol could be good choices for LA if they decide to go that route. They also have left-hander Ryan Yarbrough as well if they want someone who can go multiple innings. However, Yarbrough may be better suited for situations in the later stages of the game.
“Yeah, I think it’s the neutrality,” Roberts said of the most important factor of having an opener. “I think it’s also appreciating the fact that you’re going to face the first three or four top hitters of the lineup, that you feel comfortable that you can get through that first inning to give some runway to that next guy.”
Per SNLA
The Dodgers have some really good young arms that are going to get some run in the postseason, and their fate really will come down to how they perform. Guys like Bobby Miller, Ryan Pepiot, Emmet Sheehan and possibly Gavin Stone will see playing time for LA.
They have shown that they belong in the big leagues, but the playoffs are a whole different animal. It exposes players who aren’t prepared, and those who can’t handle the pressure of playing when the lights are brightest.
LA will do everything they have to do in order to win games. It may not always be pretty, but in the playoffs, a win is a win. And to win a game, you just need to figure out how to get 27 outs.
Photo Credit: Stephen Brashear-USA TODAY Sports
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Starters 1. Kershaw 2. Bobby Miller 3. Pepiot 4. Lance Lynn Relievers: 5. Yarborough 6. Shelby Miller 7. Graterol 8. Ferguson 9. Braiser 10 Vesia. 11. Sheehan 12. Stone 13. Phillips Everyone is doing well lately. No need to try a new approach.
Now that you bring it up, Joe Kelly might replace Stone.
I think Graterol is a high leverage guy, perhaps the most trustworthy in the pen. I just can’t see wasting him as an opener.
Kershaw is not the Kershaw of 5-10 years ago. But he’s got seniority, experience, and when healthy, still pretty damned good. If not him to start, Bobby Miller has earned it, IMO. Lance Lynn has been a stud in his short tenure, IMO. While I don’t buy the “experience” line, a game is a game, and if the pitcher is up to it, he is, but I suspect Lynn might be closer to icewater in his veins than anyone else besides the big K.