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Welcome back to the Dodgers Beat newsletter! This week, I took questions from fans in an r/Dodgers AMA. The full conversation can be viewed here, and the questions and responses below have been lightly edited for clarity.
If Kyle Tucker hits second or third, who moves down in the lineup? Is Doc planning on using at least three lefties in a row to start the lineup, or does Freddie Freeman get moved down?
My thought is that Freeman will likely drop down to fifth, at least against left-handed starters, since Dave Roberts doesn't like batting too many lefties back to back. Then again, Tucker has hit lefties very well throughout his career, so that might change the calculus some. There could also be a case to move Mookie Betts down if his performance last season was the beginning of a decline, rather than a fluke, and move up Will Smith. All that goes to say that I think there could and should be some more fluidity in the top half of the lineup than there has been in recent years.
Thoughts on second base to start the season with Tommy Edman out? Maybe Hyeseong Kim?
If Edman starts the season on the IL to finish rehabbing from ankle surgery, which seems likely, then I could see the Dodgers taking a platoon approach at second base. Miguel Rojas would be part of the mix, and I'd think his left-handed-hitting counterpart would be either Hyeseong Kim or Alex Freeland (who's a switch-hitter, but he was mostly used against right-handed pitching last year). Andy Ibáñez could factor in, as well. Once Edman's status is clear, I think second base will probably be the biggest position battle to watch during spring.
Do you anticipate Kiké Hernández and/or Evan Phillips re-signing when the 60-day IL opens? Also, given the recent signing of Tucker, do you see them trading one of Ryan Ward or Alex Call?
The Dodgers have been pretty upfront about their interest in bringing back both Kiké Hernández and Evan Phillips, so I would not be surprised if they reach an agreement once the 60-day IL is open.
I don't see a need for the Dodgers to trade Call or Ward at this point, since it's good to have more position-player depth on the 40-man. Things can change, obviously.
What do you think the rotation and bullpen look like? Thirteen pitchers, a few will be left out.
Assuming the injury information we know now is up to date, there could definitely be some odd men out. Here are my initial thoughts on a projected Opening Day pitching staff:
Rotation: Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, Shohei Ohtani (TWP, so doesn't count toward 13-pitcher limit), Roki Sasaki, Emmet Sheehan
Bullpen: Edwin Díaz, Tanner Scott, Brusdar Graterol, Alex Vesia, Blake Treinen, Anthony Banda, Jack Dreyer and one more right-hander (Ben Casparius/Edgardo Henriquez/Will Klein/Kyle Hurt)
I'm not sure about omitting Justin Wrobleski from the bullpen, because he gained some trust from Roberts quickly during the World Series. But I also think there's a possibility that he and Casparius could stretch out as starters during Spring Training to give the team more rotation depth. That piece of the puzzle remains somewhat unclear for now.
And River Ryan and Gavin Stone. And unless there’s a catastrophic collapse, no room for Evan Phillips.
It's hard to leave Stone and Ryan out, as well, but I'm sure both will start games for the Dodgers at some point. And I feel like they would find a way to make room for Phillips if he's re-signed, but yeah, this is quite the loaded staff on paper.
What will Roki Sasaki’s workload for next season be like as a starter? For example, if he may have limited innings in his first few starts or do they just let him throw as many innings [as he can] right out of the gate?
I imagine that the Dodgers will use him as a regular starter, because I think now is the time to see what he has. We really haven't seen much from Sasaki, and now that he's had a year in the organization, I'm interested to see the results of his work, whether it be an expanded arsenal (he was working on a two-seamer last year) or elevated velocity (as he had in the postseason). That said, I'd think that the team can bake in more rest for him if necessary, which may be the case.