The Los Angeles Dodgers made a significant investment into Tanner Scott this past offseason, signing the reliever to a four-year deal worth $72 million.
Scott is widely considered one of the best relievers in baseball, and the signing was highly celebrated at the time. But so far, the return on investment has not been great for the Dodgers.
The left-hander has blown three of his last four save attempts, and overall this year he holds a 4.62 ERA across 25.1 innings.
Scott was called upon to record four outs starting in the seventh inning against the Cleveland Guardians to secure a sweep, but instead allowed four runs while recording just two outs.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts shared his view on the struggles for Tanner Scott after the loss, via SportsNet LA:
“I think the crux is, when you get count leverage, we’re just not able to put guys away with the strikeout. And leaving middle spin, sliders in the zone, for them to put the ball in play. I think when you do that, sometimes the ball finds holes or some outfield grass. So that’s kind of what I see.”
Roberts feels the biggest issue into Scott’s struggles is not being able to put hitters away in two-strike counts consistently enough. That’s something they are trying to figure out, which would get Scott back on track:
“I think that’s what it is. We’ve got to kind of get to bottom of it. It’s not a usage thing. It’s something we’ve seen all year. There’s great strike throwing, getting count leverage, but just that last pitch to put guys away — like he did with Arias, I thought that was really impressive. That’s what we’ve got to unlock and be consistent with. I think the stuff is good at times, it’s just the finishing off hitters.”
Surprisingly enough, Scott’s strikeout rate is at nearly the same level this season (28.3%) to what it was during his dominant 2024 season (28.6%). But his whiff rate has fallen from 32.7% to 28.4%.
That means more balls are being put in play, and he has given up more hard hit balls and barrels this season than last. That creates a recipe for blown saves, especially for a Dodgers’ defense that isn’t great to begin with.
But Scott is also the victim of some bad luck in general, so there should be better days ahead. Still, to get back to elite levels, he needs to find a way to be more consistent missing bats.
Dodgers hitters were happy signing Tanner Scott
When the Dodgers signed Scott, he was coming off an excellent season with the Miami Marlins and San Diego Padres that saw him post a combined 1.75 ERA, 2.92 FIP and 1.13 WHIP in 72 innings. It was the second consecutive year he recorded an ERA below 2.35 with at least 70 innings pitched.
After dominating the Dodgers in the postseason, general manager Brandon Gomes shared the hitters were excited to not have to face him anymore.
“Obviously, our pitching group was incredibly excited when they found out the news about Tanner joining us,” Gomes said. “But I do think what was even more impressive and speaks volumes to Tanner is I think our hitting group was equally as giddy not having to face him and game plan for him, because the stuff he’s bringing is not something you can game plan for.”
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