As the calendar gets set to turn to July, Major League Baseball teams released their initial player pools for summer camp and the 2020 season. For the Los Angeles Dodgers, their group consisted of only 51 players — 28 of which are pitchers.
One of their biggest strengths in recent seasons, the group features an excellent blend of established veterans and promising prospects. As it pertains to the starting rotation specifically, the club has many options to choose from when constructing their 30-man active roster for Opening Day.
Among the holdovers from last season include the likes of Clayton Kershaw, Walker Buehler and Julio Urias. Newcomers to the staff extend to David Price and Alex Wood. Tony Gonsolin, Dustin May, Jimmy Nelson and Ross Stripling are other options with Major League experience that could potentially make an impact at some point in the season as well.
Despite having a bevy of candidates to choose from, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts revealed the club will open the season with a five-man starting rotation, though he doesn’t expect pitchers to log more than four innings during their first turn through, via Jon Morosi of MLB Network:
Dave Roberts said the #Dodgers are planning to begin the regular season with a 5-man starting rotation. He added that he doesn't anticipate starting pitchers going beyond 4 innings per game during their first turn through the rotation. @MLB @MLBNetwork @MLBNetworkRadio
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) June 24, 2020
Given the unique circumstances brought on by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, it makes sense that Roberts wants to ease in his starting pitchers during their first turn through the rotation.
The long layoff arguably puts pitchers at the greatest risk of suffering an injury this season. It’s why a universal designated hitter was implemented for the 2020 season, among other changes included in the health and safety protocols.
Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman on multiple occasions has mentioned pitchers — in particular starters — as the position group he was most concerned with coming out of the long layoff.
That the Dodgers are loaded with depth also makes Roberts’ decision much easier. The club doesn’t necessarily need to overwork the staff right away and can rely on what’s expected to be an improved bullpen to carry the load.
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