The Dodgers entered the postseason with the best rotation of any team on paper, led by Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who proved to be practically superhuman in the World Series last year.
However, with Blake Snell tweaking his right groin muscle in his penultimate regular-season start, Tyler Glasnow pitching better after a rough patch in early September and Tarik Skubal experiencing his first Dodgers playoff run, some questions remained unanswered.
Then the group gave up just four runs, one from each pitcher, during their National League Division Series win over the Atlanta Braves. Their collective 1.69 ERA was second in the postseason to only the Tampa Bay Rays (1.65 ERA), who swept the Yankees in the American League Division Series.
“We locked in and did a pretty good job,” Glasnow said Friday. “All of us together are so close. We root each other on, we help each other throughout the week.”
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In the Dodgers’ quest for a third straight World Series title, the rotation is going to have to serve as the backbone.
“It certainly makes life easier for the team, the bullpen, if the starters are good,” said manager Dave Roberts during a conference call. “I think we’ve got the best rotation top to bottom in baseball, and it’s nice to be able to reset the rotation and get these guys going. And obviously, it gives a chance to also minimize certain looks from our guys out of the ‘pen.”
Skubal is set to start Game 1 of the National League Championship Series against the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday. By ending the NLDS in four games, the Dodgers avoided having to pitch Skubal in a Game 5, making it simpler to line up the rotation. Skubal should be available for a potential Game 5, on regular rest.
The Dodgers were thinking about the NLCS when they decided to pitch Yamamoto in Game 3 against the Braves instead of Game 1. So, he’s lined up to pitch in Game 2 and 6 of the NLCS.
“From there, we’re just going to keep talking through it,” Roberts said.
The Dodgers have shown promising signs in other areas. They hit two home runs off Braves ace Chris Sale and forced him to hand the ball over after five innings in Game 3. The back end of the bullpen settled into a rhythm with Tanner Scott serving as the setup man and Edwin Díaz reestablishing himself as the closer.
The success, however, started with the rotation.
“They did what they had to do,” Kiké Hernández said. “They kept us in games when we weren’t scoring. Not surprised.”
The Dodgers lost Game 2 after Snell exited with two outs in the fourth inning. It was the shortest outing of any of the Dodgers’ starters, but he still held the Braves to one run.
Snell, however, was coming off a disjointed pitching schedule because of the injury. With his postseason experience, he could settle into a better rhythm as the playoffs continue.
Glasnow didn’t quite make it through the fifth inning in Game 4, exiting with two outs. But with runs at a premium, and more off days built into the postseason, shorter starts are common. Glasnow’s five walks drove up his pitch count, but he gave up only one hit.
In Game 1, Skubal gave the Dodgers exactly what they hoped for when they acquired him at the trade deadline. He limited the Braves to two hits over six innings.
“I’ve executed every pitch that I throw thousands of times,” Skubal said after his start. “So just trust that, trust the work that you put in. It sounds simple to try and live one pitch at a time, but I think it’s pretty difficult given [the] circumstances.”
Yamamoto raised the bar even higher: seven innings of one-run ball. His 10 strikeouts were a playoff career high.
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Yamamoto also made it clear that, like last year, he would be willing to pitch out of the bullpen or on short rest if needed.
“I’m going to get myself ready for any situation,” he said through interpreter Yoshihiro Sonoda this week. “If they want me to go out, then I go out. But for me, just those are key things for me. Postseason is just focusing on the game right in front of me.”
The Dodgers, planning on a deep run, didn’t tax their starting pitchers heavily in their first round. That gives them the option to lean on the rotation even more against the Brewers.
“We’re all kind of in the prime of our careers, and we’re all evolving and continuing to get better and grow,” Snell said last weekend. “I think the coolest part about the whole group that no one gets to see is really how much we talk about pitching. It’s very unique. It doesn’t happen everywhere. For all of us to kind of be pushing for each other to be great, it’s a really cool starting staff to be a part of.”
Roster decision
The Dodgers plan to carry a roster of 13 pitchers and 13 position players in the NLCS, Roberts said, one more pitcher and one fewer position player than last round.
In the NLDS, the Dodgers left left-handed relievers Justin Wrobleski and Jack Dreyer off the roster. They carried rookie pinch-hitter Josue De Paula and pinch-runner/utility player Hyeseong Kim.
It remains to be seen if Miguel Rojas will be part of the roster. Rojas tweaked his back in Game 3 when his feet slid out from under him in the slick grass in shallow right field as he made an on-target throw to first base. He left the game in the middle of his next at-bat, aggravating the injury on a swing. He did not play in Game 4.
“Today was encouraging,” Roberts said. “He had imaging, and a lot of it was kind of stuff that he has had prior history. So, we’ve still got a flight to get on. See how he comes in tomorrow for the workout there. So there’s nothing definitive. But I will say today was a step in the right direction. He took ground balls and took a couple rounds of [batting practice]. So that was good to see.”
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
