Walker Buehler and Julio Urias have anchored the Los Angeles Dodgers pitching staff all season, but as the regular season comes to an end, both have some concerns surrounding them.
Since the beginning of September, Buehler has made four starts and posted a 7.32 ERA along with a 4.59 FIP with only 13 strikeouts over that span. The stretch of bad games has pushed him from being the favorite to win the National League Cy Young Award to a potential question mark heading into October.
However, with the talent Buehler has and the ability he has shown to step up in the postseason, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts isn’t worried.
“I don’t have a concern. I think if you look at the recency, which makes sense as we gear towards the postseason, with Walker, it hasn’t been stuff,” Roberts said. “It’s been execution and I think there could be some (different) pitch selection. He’s going to get better and he’s got to perform. He knows that.”
In his last start on Sept. 22 against the Colorado Rockies, Buehler only pitched 3.2 innings and allowed five earned runs with just two strikeouts. He looks to rebound on Tuesday against the San Diego Padres.
Roberts equally confident in Urias
The concern with Urias is different as he has continued to perform well, however, his workload effectively is 100 more innings than he has in any previous season and there’s been a decline in fastball velocity.
The average velocity on Urias’ fastball has dropped from 94.3 mph at its peak in July to 93.5 mph in September, which could be a sign he is starting to show fatigue. Urias’ changeup has also lost two mph and his curveball has lost one mph.
Urías’ fastball averaged 92.9 mph against the Arizona Diamondbacks last week and it dipped more against the Rockies, clocking in at 92.4 mph, but despite the drop, he still feels strong and healthy.
“With Julio, I think there’s been a downtick in velocity but I still think he’s throwing the baseball well,” Roberts said. “I’m not going to really concern myself too much over a mile an hour on the average with the fastball with 100 pitches in a game. So not concerned right now.”
In his most recent outing on Monday, Sept. 26, Urias touched 93 and 94 mph on occasion, but his fastball velocity remained down.
Have you subscribed to the Dodger Blue YouTube channel? Be sure to ring the notification bell to watch player interviews, participate in shows and giveaways, and more!
