Los Angeles Dodgers: Three biggest questions for the postseason roster
By Jason Reed
2. How much do you trust the rookie pitchers?
The Los Angeles Dodgers have two notable rookie pitchers that really helped the team down the stretch and helped the bullpen turn from mediocre to having the best ERA in the National Leauge.
You know those two rookies by now. Dustin May and Tony Gonsolin have been thrown to the wolves over the last month as an October tryout, and for the most part, the two have done enough to make the roster.
Gonsolin has been nothing but solid for the Dodgers and really is a special arm that will be part of this team’s long-term plans. So will Dustin May, who did have a slow start to his career, but has some of the nastiest stuff we have ever seen and can be that electric hard-throwing bullpen arm.
Gonsolin finished with a 2.93 ERA in 40 innings pitched while May finished with a 3.63 ERA in 34 and two-thirds innings pitched.
The Dodgers are doing something unique with their fourth starter and with their bullpen this October. Perhaps inspired by the Boston Red Sox a year ago, the bullpen is full of starting pitchers than have length and can throw three or more innings. This is vastly different from the matchup heavy Dodgers of the last two years.
Rich Hill, Ross Stripling, Kenta Maeda, Dustin May and Tony Gonsolin can all wear this hat. The question then becomes how much you can trust these rookie pitchers. They have certainly performed but they have never pitcher in October, and especially with May, the emotions could get the best of them.
It will be fun to watch how the Dodgers manage five starting pitchers for that fourth starter spot and in the bullpen. If they trust May and Gonsolin and they deliver then that very well could be the difference in winning the World Series.