Dodgers: Four players that are set to regress in 2018

Alex Wood

Alex Wood was great in 2017. Will he be a solid asset to the starting rotation in 2017? If he stays healthy, without a doubt. Wood proved his doubters wrong in the postseason; that when he is rested he can return to his near-unhittable production. However, Wood did begin to flame out in 2017, showing signs of fatigue.

Ultimately, Wood is going to have a very hard time replicating the performance he gave fans in 2018. The only real improvement for Wood is to compete for the Cy Young reward, a leap he likely isn’t ready to take after just one all-star caliber season.

Wood started 2017 untouchable, winning 11 games and losing none in the process. At that time, Wood had a 1.56 ERA. Late in the season, though, shoulder inflammation (likely caused by fatigue) slowed Wood down and ultimately hindered his production. He still did finish with a 2.72 ERA on the year, but he finished 2017 with five starts allowing three or more runs after starting 11-0.

Now, just because Wood will regress does not mean he will be a bad pitcher. Realistically, that 2.72 ERA should be a goal for Wood to beat. Wood has the making to flirt with the 3.00 ERA line and eventually sink under it; we saw that in 2017.

However, he likely will not be able to repeat the 11-0 start from 2017; it was special, nobody should expect him to repeat that. Thus, technically speaking, Wood will regress in 2018.