Los Angeles Dodgers: Why you should love Adam Kolarek

The Los Angeles Dodgers did not get the best lefty reliever on the market but did get a lefty reliever from Tampa Bay in Adam Kolarek.

A lot of fans wanted the Los Angeles Dodgers to trade for Pittsburgh Pirates reliever Felipe Vazquez at the trade deadline. Vazquez was viewed by many as the best reliever available and the Dodgers need relievers.

However, that was not meant to be as the Dodgers likely did not want to meet the Pirates’ asking price for Vazquez. That did not keep the team from making any moves, though, as the Dodgers landed a different southpaw reliever.

The Los Angeles Dodgers acquired left-handed reliever Adam Kolarek from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for Niko Hulsizer.

Hulsizer is a stout hitting prospect that is hitting .265 with 20 home runs across two different minor league levels. However, with a big-league club and minor league system full of outfielders, Hulsizer was an easy piece to part ways with.

And while the Dodgers did not get the marquee name in Vazquez, they did get a good southpaw in Kolarek. Kolarek has a 3.95 ERA and 1.22 WHIP in 41 and one-third innings pitched this season.

That might not seem all that great, but Kolarek fills a huge void in the Dodgers’ pen as he is someone that can get left-handed hitters out.

Lefties are hitting just .187 with a .531 OPS against Kolarek this season. The Dodgers are actually third in the majors with a .229 batting average against while facing lefties, but this obviously feels the left-handed void in the bullpen.

Kolarek also has a 77.7 percent left on base rate, which immensely helps the Dodgers, who are 24th in the league with a 70.1 percent left on base rate. In 20.1 innings pitched against left-handed hitters, he has a 98.8 percent left on base rate. That is the fourth-best in the majors.

Kolarek also only walks lefties 2.5 percent of the time, the third-lowest walk rate against lefties in the league.

So it is obvious that Kolarek is going to have a set role on the Los Angeles Dodgers and that is getting left-handed batters out. Having that kind of arm to turn to in the postseason is huge.

And while you might be upset that it is not Vazquez, the Dodgers’ bullpen should be fine come October.

You figure that the team is going to be able to add Kenta Maeda, Ross Stripling and Julio Urias to the bullpen. Those three alongside a better Joe Kelly, Kolarek, Pedro Baez, Casey Sadler and Kenley Jansen is not a bad outlook.

The team can then have Scott Alexander, Yimi Garcia, J.T. Chargois and company all battle for that final bullpen spot. It might not have the wipeout arm that other bullpens have had in the past, but that is fine.

I mean, the three most recent World Series Champions didn’t have great bullpens. The 2018 Red Sox were 12th in bullpen fWAR, the 2017 Astros were eighth and the 2016 Cubs were 22nd. The Dodgers are currently 15th in WAR.

The Dodgers have pieces to internally add to the bullpen and Kolarek was the perfect external addition to get left-handed hitters out.