by Cary Osborne
This was the spot Tyler Glasnow was supposed to be in — twice.
Twice the right-handed pitcher with enormous promise was tracking toward All-Star selections.
Then his forearm barked, and later it bit.
Glasnow, for a good period, was one of the top pitchers in the American League in 2019 and 2021.
Forearm tightness in May 2019 knocked him out for four months. Then a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament in 2021 in June ended his season.
Glasnow, in his first season with the Dodgers and ninth Major League season, was selected to his first All-Star team on Sunday when reserves and pitchers were named.
“It’s always been a goal of mine to go to the All-Star Game, and I think just the injuries and stuff in the past have made it not possible for me to go,” Glasnow said. “So it’s special to be able to go this year, especially with the hometown team and everything.”
When the season began for the Dodgers, starting pitching depth was in abundance. Glasnow has ended up being the constant in the rotation, leading the group with 18 starts (all on turn) and 109 innings pitched. Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Bobby Miller and Walker Buehler have all spent considerable time on the injured list.
Glasnow now approaches career highs in starts (21) and innings pitched (120) — both established last season with Tampa Bay.
He says his ability to post every game has been one of the biggest accomplishments of this season.
“I think as far as consistency goes, throughout the work week and mechanical stuff, it’s been a lot better this year than it was last year,” he said.
Last season could be considered the peak of Glasnow’s career. But the 2019 and 2021 seasons were trending to be those in the first half:
2019: 1.86 ERA/0.91 WHIP in eight starts, 55 strikeouts in 48 1/3 innings
2021: 2.66 ERA/0.93 WHIP in 14 starts, 123 strikeouts in 88 innings
Glasnow’s offseason trade to the Dodgers brought him home. The Hart High graduate from Newhall — an hour’s drive from Dodger Stadium — has thrived in his first half-season in Dodger blue. Now he has accomplished what in the past was taken from him as an All-Star.
He leads the National League with 143 strikeouts, has the league’s lowest opponents’ batting average (.183) and paces the NL in strikeouts per nine innings (11.8). He has a 3.47 ERA and 0.93 WHIP.
He envisioned all this when he was younger — All-Star selection included.
“I don’t know how realistic it was,” he says. “But when I was a little kid, yeah, I wanted to play for the Dodgers (in the All-Star Game). It’s crazy that that it’s happening for sure.”
Tyler Glasnow has long been on the road to an All-Star selection was originally published in Dodger Insider on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.