As Skubal faces Reds, Dodgers believe 'we haven't seen the best of him'

LOS ANGELES -- The Dodgers switched up their rotation order for this week's series against the Reds at Dodger Stadium, moving left-hander Tarik Skubal up to Tuesday and pushing right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto back to Wednesday.

The change allows Skubal to start on four days' rest -- which he did somewhat regularly before being traded to the Dodgers -- and Yamamoto to get an additional day of rest in between starts. Yamamoto is the only member of the Dodgers' projected postseason rotation who has not missed a start this season.

Skubal's previous start was a strange one. He gave up a career-high-tying 10 hits -- all singles -- but was still able to hold the Cardinals to two earned runs across 5 2/3 innings last Thursday.

As he reflected on his unusual final line, Skubal said that he generally was not far off from executing his pitches. He wasn't missing badly, and he was at least able to prevent slug. In the end, Skubal came away sounding more perplexed than frustrated.

"Baseball's a weird game," he said. "It's a really weird game."

In some ways, the bizarre outing felt representative of Skubal's time as a Dodger thus far. He has been solid for L.A., going 1-2 with a 3.03 ERA (12 earned runs in 35 2/3 innings) across six starts. Each time he has taken the ball, he's given his team a chance to win.

Skubal hasn't been far off from his top form, but the Dodgers also have yet to see him at his best. They already love his mound presence, but they know there is more in there -- which they expect to come out down the stretch and in the postseason.

"​​I know we haven't seen the best of him," manager Dave Roberts said after Skubal's previous start. "Finding a way with the pitch count up early to then almost get through six innings -- and not have that stellar stuff or outing -- still speaks to the compete [level]."

Because Skubal is pitching on regular rest for the first time as a Dodger, the team could be mindful of his workload on Tuesday. Skubal has exceeded 100 pitches in three starts with L.A., but he's also been capped in the mid-80s twice. There is no set blueprint for the Dodgers, but they are managing Skubal with an eye on getting the most out of him in the postseason, not in September.