Until Hyun-Jin Ryu did so on April 18, Clayton Kershaw and Brandon McCarthy were the lone Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitchers to throw at least six innings in a start. Kershaw had done so three times to that point, and McCarthy twice.
Entering Saturday, the Dodgers have received at least six innings from their starting pitcher in five of the past six games. Julio Urias, in his 2017 debut on Thursday was the exception, and he pitched 5.2 innings.
By calling up Urias, the Dodgers are going with a six-man rotation for one turn through. Beyond trimming back down to a traditional five-man rotation, Rich Hill’s pending return adds another challenge to deciding who heads to the bullpen.
So too might Kenta Maeda’s strong outing Friday night. He allowed just two runs on five hits, and had eight strikeouts over seven innings of work. Maeda’s performance was a stark contrast to his previous four starts.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts had alluded to the fact Maeda in some regard was pitching for his spot in the rotation. Following Friday’s win, Roberts acknowledged difficulty may lie ahead in settling on a rotation.
“We’ve got to discuss it,” he said. “I think it’s a good thing when our starters, and we have a plethora of quality starters that are now pitching well, put some tough decisions in front of us. As an organization we have to have some conversations. Maybe some tough conversations.”
Alex Wood appears the likely candidate to be squeezed out of the rotation, just as he was at the start of the season, because of his experience as a reliever. However, Wood has pitched well when called upon to start.
Hill may wind up in the bullpen as a means to better manage his chronic blister, but the Dodgers have not yet made that determination. As it currently stands, Kershaw, McCarthy and Urias appear to be the only locks to remain starting pitchers.
