It’s an interesting time to be a Dodgers pitcher, with plenty of rearranging going on as the rotation gets crowded.
Hours remain until the trade deadline, and while the Dodgers are still looking for a reliever and maybe a couple of bats, they might not need to do too much when it comes to the rotation, writes Bill Plunkett at the Orange County Register.
Not only are pitchers like Blake Snell coming back from the injured list soon, the team is also experimenting with some of the other available pitching spots. Bobby Miller, who’s been trying to improve in Triple-A, is moving from the starting rotation and into the bullpen in the hopes of turning things around. There’s no timeline for his return to the majors, but manager Dave Roberts is hoping that a change of scenery will help.
“This might be something that unlocks him – going hard for a shorter period of time, to get some confidence for him, which could help us here,” Roberts said.
Shohei Ohtani is up to four innings per start and no longer needs to have someone ready to follow him after a shorter period, helping save arms for more work later.
As for the rest of the team, the Dodgers will still have plenty of options soon, even with a six-man rotation, leaving Emmet Sheehan and Dustin May the chance to compete for a spot or transition to the bullpen for now.
Dodgers Notes
Alex Freeland made headlines with his call up, but the shortstop isn’t usually in the spotlight, writes Jim Callis at MLB.com. Freeland stands out more for his player ability as a whole rather than for any one specific skill, but that’s no issue—the Dodgers could use some even-keeled dependability.
Dodgers reliever Alexis Díaz made a big impact in Tuesday’s game, throwing eight pitches to get four outs. They’re still learning about their new teammate, but what they’ve seen so far is promising, writes Fabian Ardaya at The Athletic.
Are you a card collector? If not, you might want to get started. Orel Hershiser signed a one-of-a-kind card during Spring Training, and he’s willing to exchange a one-of-a-kind trip to Dodger Stadium to get the card in his collection, writes Steve Henson at the Los Angeles Times.