Justin Wrobleski has perhaps been the Los Angeles Dodgers’ biggest surprise in 2026. The young left-hander had a pair of rough outings last month, but finished strong will seven impressive innings against the Philadelphia Phillies on May 29.
While there has been plenty of discourse over his approach and results, Wrobleski developed a unique approach to tracking performances, according to Katie Woo of The Athletic.
After each start, Justin Wrobleski pulls up his laptop, opens up Excel and assigns himself a score.
It’s a simple process, he says: A score of 100 represents the baseline, and values are assigned based on standard deviations above and below league average. There are inputs for everything: first-pitch strikes, zone efficiency, how often he records an out in three pitches or less, how many times he establishes a 1-2 or an 0-2 count, etc.
He has a crafted a system that works best for his style of learning, which has made self-scouting after each start much easier.
“It’s my thing,” Wrobleski said. “I love spreadsheets. Assigning values is much easier for me to understand than just talking things over or journaling. During a long season, it’s easier for me to just take 10 minutes to punch in values and see where I’m at, go back and watch the outing, and then be able to combine all that together.”
The 25-year-old has taken advantage of his opportunity this season and firmly entrenched himself in the Dodgers’ rotation, with a 2.87 ERA, 1.01 WHIP and .210 batting average against.
Wrobleski has become a reliable option in the starting staff this season. Manager Dave Roberts can count on the left-hander to provide length even when he has an off outing.
The Dodgers starter has completed at least five innings or more in all nine of his starts, including four outings of at least seven innings.
Justin Wrobleski’s simple explanation for increased velocity
Efficiency has been Wrobleski’s biggest strength in 2026, so it’s no surprise to see he places an emphasis on tracking related data in his spreadsheet.
His most recent start against the Phillies was the first time he has been able to pair that efficiency with a high strikeouts total, which has eluded him for the most part in 2026.
One change that helped was a notable increase in velocity, which has also been reduced from last season. The left-hander attributed the results from May 29 to being in a better position with his mechanics, although he wasn’t able to pinpoint what exactly helped him feel back in sync.
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