Los Angeles Dodgers President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman said the Dodgers will open the first month of the season with a regular five-man rotation, according to Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic. Since the month of April features regular off days as the season ramps up, the Dodgers will hold off on the extra man for now. As a result, it looks like they will have an eight-man bullpen for the time being.
For Now, Dodgers Have No Plans For Six-Man Rotation
The most notable update from Andrew Friedman this morning: he expects the Dodgers to go with a traditional five-man rotation until Shohei Ohtani is back before going to a six-man.
So that would mean an eight-man bullpen.
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) February 14, 2025
The extra man they are waiting for? Shohei Ohtani. The 2024 National League Most Valuable Player will throw bullpen sessions in spring training. However, he will not see live action until the regular season.
(Not) Killing Two Birds With One Stone
Last season, Los Angeles dealt with a myriad of injuries to the starting rotation. In order to mitigate that this season, they announced they would go with a six-man rotation. This allows pitchers such as Tyler Glasnow and Shohei Ohtani to limit the innings they throw as they are recovering from injuries. In addition, it gives Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki the rest to which they are accustomed.
What This Means for the Roster.
The temporary change of plans means that either Tony Gonsolin or Dustin May will begin the season in the bullpen. Both pitchers are coming back from Tommy John Surgery.
A Plethora of Pitching
This news comes on the heels of the Clayton Kershaw signing being official. The 18-year veteran will start the year on the 60-day list. The self-ascribed “Dodger For Life” is recovering from multiple surgeries, but is confident that he will be ready to pitch once the 60 days are complete. Kershaw seems eager to contribute to a team that wants to compete for another World Series.
The Dodger have plenty of pieces to play with this spring. It will be interesting to see where all the pieces fit as the regular season approaches.
Main Photo Credits: Joe Camporeale-Imagn Images
