Behind star-studded rotation, Dodgers boast bevy of intriguing young arms

GLENDALE, Ariz. -- Even while winning the last two World Series, the Dodgers have had difficulty keeping pitchers healthy. Not including openers, they employed 11 different starters in 2024 and 14 last season.

But bad news for the rest of baseball. Not only can Los Angeles run out four All-Stars -- Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow -- when they're all healthy, but it also has a number of intriguing arms rising through a farm system rated No. 2 by MLB Pipeline.

While all five of the Dodgers' Top 100 Prospects are hitters, right-hander River Ryan and left-hander Jackson Ferris have ranked on the list in the past. Righties Christian Zazueta and Marlon Nieves and lefties Adam Serwinowski and Zach Root have upward mobility and could land on the Top 100 in the near future. Ryan, Ferris, Zazueta and Serwinowski all arrived via trades, a tribute to the organization's ability to add prospect talent while simultaneously pursuing championships.

"You just never have enough pitching," vice president of player development Will Rhymes said. "We do have a lot of depth on the pitching side, and a lot of quality as well. We feel good about the starting pitchers throughout the system and we have some interesting relievers as well. Our acquisition teams do a good job of identifying traits we can help and our pitching guys do a phenomenal job."

A two-way player at NCAA Division II UNC Pembroke, Ryan joined the Dodgers in a 2022 trade that sent Matt Beaty to the Padres. He posted a 1.33 ERA in four big league starts in 2024 before blowing out his elbow, requiring Tommy John surgery that sidelined him for all of last year. He's fully healthy again and recapturing his electric stuff, highlighted by a 95-100 mph four-seam fastball with big carry and a tight upper-80s slider.

"We're really excited to get River back," Rhymes said. "He has the same arsenal -- four-seam, two-seam, cutter, slider, curveball, changeup -- and he has developed a sweeper. It speaks to his ability to manipulate the ball. All of his pitches are truly different. If anything, he's better than he was before."

Ferris and outfield prospect Zyhir Hope arrived in a January 2024 deal that shipped Michael Busch and Yency Almonte to the Cubs, a transaction both sides are happy with. After winning Dodgers Minor League Pitcher of the Year accolades in his first season in the organization, Ferris saw his stuff and control regress a bit last season. He still ranked third in the Double-A Texas League with 135 strikeouts in 126 innings at age 21, posting a 1.97 ERA in his final 12 starts.

"Jackson is in a good spot," Rhymes said. "His fastball is really good with good velocity and release metrics. He came to us with a curveball as his main breaking piece and has developed a firmer bullet slider the last couple of years that has grown into his best secondary pitch. We still like the curve. We want to mix in more changeups and hope to limit the walks a little bit."

Acquired from the Yankees in a February 2024 trade for Caleb Ferguson, Zazueta won organizational Minor League Pitcher of the Year honors last year after logging a 2.44 ERA with an 80/16 K/BB ratio in 66 1/3 innings in Single-A. His fastball and changeup already are plus pitches, and his control is nearly as good.

"Zaz has taken another step forward," Rhymes said. "It's been impressive. His fastball is a really good quality fastball and is sitting at 96-98 mph at times this spring. His changeup is an out pitch. He's using his spin pitches more and he's mixing them well. He has feel to execute, the demeanor to take the ball every five days, throws strikes -- a lot of qualities we look for in starting pitchers."

Camp standout: James Tibbs III (No. 11 prospect)

One of the best offensive prospects in the 2024 college class, Tibbs went 13th overall in that Draft to the Giants, only to get traded twice in his first full pro season. The Florida State outfield product was included in the stunning Rafael Devers deal with the Red Sox, who sent him to the Dodgers six weeks later to land Dustin May. Tibbs slashed .269/.407/.493 in Double-A after the second trade and has raked at a .326/.392/.651 clip with three homers in Cactus League play.

"James has made a really good impression in big league camp," Rhymes said. "We knew he could hit. He conducts very good at-bats and really controls the zone. It's wow hand speed. It's loud. From the first few batting practices, the staff was like, ‘Whoa!’ He'll make solid contact, probably have more power than that and he'll walk a lot."

Spring Breakout sleeper: Marlon Nieves (No. 19 prospect)

Signed for just $10,000 out of the Dominican Republic in 2023, Nieves started to take off in his U.S. debut last summer. He limited opponents to a .171 average while posting a 27 percent strikeout rate between the Rookie-level Arizona Complex League and Single-A Rancho Cucamonga. He switched from a four-seam fastball to a two-seamer that jumped into the mid-90s and touched 99 mph, and he also showed a mid-80s slider with devastating sweep at times.

"Marlon flew under the radar, even a little bit internally," Rhymes said. "Once he went to Rancho and was pretty dominant there, that was eye-opening. His stuff is really good. His cutter and slider are excellent pitches, and that two-seamer has such velocity. He has a real feel for execution and manipulation. He's a hell of an athlete, such an easy, whippy thrower."

Breakout potential: Adam Serwinowski (No. 12 prospect)

As part of a three-team trade last July, the Dodgers sent Hunter Feduccia to the Rays and received Serwinowski from the Reds. He topped the High-A Midwest League in strikeouts (136 in 108 2/3 innings) and strikeout rate (29 percent), displaying a mid-90s fastball with extension, spin and carry and a nasty low-80s breaking ball with horizontal and vertical action.

"It's been great getting to know Adam," Rhymes said. "He's an absolute competitor on the mound. He came to us with a couple of really good pitches with his fastball and curveball. The main project now is to give him a hard slider that sits in between his fastball and curveball. He's spending a little bandwidth on his changeup, and while his fastball plays up in the zone, he can find different places to put it so it won't be so predictable."

Bounceback candidate: Brady Smith

Los Angeles liked Smith's combination of stuff and strikes enough to draft him in 2023's third round out of a Tennessee high school. The right-hander had Tommy John surgery shortly after signing, delaying his pro debut until June 2025, and he battled his control last summer. But he shows flashes of four solid or better pitches, and he's still just 21.

"We're really high on Brady," Rhymes said. "He's only thrown 21 professional innings. His changeup is an absolute 70 [on the 20-80 scouting scale] -- it's a kill pitch. His fastball has averaged 95 mph this spring. He has weapons to harness."