The Dodgers Pitching Staff of Woes
The Dodgers have had to deal with their fair share of injuries this year. Injuries that opened doors to new players who have made a name for themselves quickly. Players like Nathan Eovaldi(right) and Justin Sellers have already made themselves noticed with their injury tryouts.
Photo by Jeff Curry/Getty Images via Zimbio
It seems as if a Dodger organization filled with pitchers has depleted thanks to the DL. In a season that many have given up on, the Dodgers have had a chance to see who’s good and who’s not. Who’s durable and who’s not. From what it seems, the Dodgers have not had a pleasant season but the finds they have made in their minor league system makes next year look good. Let’s take a look at the injuries that have affected a pitching staff that seemed to be good enough to compete with the rest of the NL West.
Ned Colleti was excited November 26, 2010. He just inked Jon Garland to complete the rotation the Dodgers would use this season. Jon Garland was to be the fifth starter, joining the likes of Kershaw, Lilly, Billingsley and Kuroda. Although the signing looked to be the perfect resolution to a pitching staff that needed to keep up with the Giants, the atmosphere surrounding the sign turned sour. Garland went on the disabled list June 2 after a 1-5 start. His ERA stood at 4.33. Three days after he was placed on the DL, it was announced that Garland would have season ending surgery.
A rookie out of the Dominican Republic named Rubby De La Rosa would fill in and quickly raise questions as to why he hadn’t been on the major league roster since spring training. Although he did not receive much run support, which was noted in his 4-5 record. His 3.71 ERA was pretty good for a rookie who was thrust into a starter’s role. In his five losses, he received 1.6 runs of support. In two of his starts, the Dodgers were shut out. Unfortunately, Garland’s replacement would need to be replaced on August 1st. It was announced that De La Rosa would be sent to the DL and would have season ending Tommy John surgery. Another rookie would step in.
Nathan Eovaldi has only made four starts since being called up but has impressed every time. From his debut, a win at Arizona, to his home debut, which included his first career hit, to his last start, a dominating five innings of one run ball. Eovaldi’s ERA stands at an impressive 2.05. In his only loss,he allowed all of two runs. The Dodgers would lose that game 3-1. Eovaldi is the first pitcher starter since 1957 to start his major league career with four starts of five innings or more while not allowing more than two runs a game. Eovaldi seems to be the fix for the problem that Garlands injury caused. Unfortunately, the pitching staff would take a couple more blows.
With the starting rotation finding a fix, the bullpen was constantly hit with injuries. After a sweep of the Cardinals, the roster shows that Jonathan Broxton, Vicente Padilla, and Kenley Janson are all on the DL. Minor leagues would once again be a place that the Dodgers found surprisingly good talent. Early season problems in the ‘pen lead to Jansen being called up multiple times. He proved to be a good reliever, with a 3.65 ERA to go with his 60 K’s. He fell victim to the DL, but he was activated today. Scott Elbert was also another fix to a depleted bullpen. After only pitching once all last season, Elbert has put up an even WHIP of 1.00 and has kept a low ERA which currently stands at 2.88. Javy Guerra filled in pretty well, and even took over the closers job. His rookie year has been filled with eventful game endings, including a couple bases loaded jams. Eleven saved games against only one blown save. Josh Lindblom has been up and down this year yet still has given the Dodgers a good enough reliever to fill in the bullpen. He is currently back with the Isotopes. He was optioned to make room for Jansen. He has made 16 appearances for the Dodgers and has an sub 3.00 ERA.
Although the pitching staff has been hit more than once, the Dodgers have found players who would have gone unnoticed had the injuries not occurred. The offense has also been hit multiple times, causing the organization to dip into its minor league system as well. Players like Dee Gordon finally got their shot. Players like Sands and Sellers were able to get their major league debuts out the way. For now, the Dodgers will wait till more players become healthy and make use of what they have stocked up on for years, their minor league system.
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