STARTING ROTATION
Each of the past two seasons, the starting rotation has dissolved with injuries and off-field issues (Julio Urias in 2023), leaving them short in October. That has been addressed with back-to-back winters of heavy investment in starting pitching. The result is a deep group with the potential to be the best in baseball – if everyone stays healthy. Two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell will lead a rotation that also includes Tyler Glasnow, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, electric rookie Roki Sasaki and a resurrected Dustin May. Tony Gonsolin, Clayton Kershaw, Bobby Miller and Justin Wrobleski provide depth and will be seen at some point. Then there is Shohei Ohtani, whose throwing program is expected to resume with a bullpen session this weekend. With so many options, there is no reason to rush Ohtani’s return from a second Tommy John surgery.
BULLPEN
Tommy Edman (NLCS) and Freddie Freeman (World Series) won the awards, but the bullpen was the real MVP of the Dodgers’ run to a World Series title last fall. Most of that group – Blake Treinen, Alex Vesia, Anthony Banda, Michael Kopech and Evan Phillips – returns for 2025 (though Phillips and Kopech open the season on the injured list). And the Dodgers added the two best relievers available on the free-agent market this winter, signing Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates. Scott will be the nominal closer, but Phillips, Treinen, Yates and Kopech are also capable of closing games. The Dodgers’ ability to shorten games with a series of shutdown relievers will be a major asset this season.
INFIELD
Mookie Betts’ return to shortstop was delayed by an illness that sidelined him for the two games in Tokyo and is still hampering him as the home opener approaches. Hyeseong Kim was signed out of Korea for three years and $12.5 million but his MLB arrival will also be delayed. In spring training, it was evident he was not ready for major-league pitching and will start the season in Triple-A instead of at second base for the Dodgers. That will create a bit of a revolving door at second with Edman, Kiké Hernandez, Chris Taylor and/or Miguel Rojas playing there. Freeman and Max Muncy return at the corners with the 35-year-old Freeman on a mission to prove that last year’s numbers (his lowest since 2015) were a product of injury and not a sign of the aging process. Questions about Betts’ ability to handle the defensive challenges at shortstop have some pointing to defense as the “super team” Dodgers’ weakness. That seems overblown rather than a real concern.
OUTFIELD
The Dodgers’ best outfielder will be playing shortstop, but the group manning the three outfield spots should be productive. Teoscar Hernandez returns after an All-Star, Silver-Slugger season in 2024. Edman figures to play a lot of center field with Andy Pages (a career .350 hitter against left-handed pitching) getting at-bats against lefties. The Dodgers hit it big on a one-year signing of Hernandez last year and Manager Dave Roberts called another one-year signing, left fielder Michael Conforto, his “pick to click” this spring.
CATCHER
The Will Smith-Austin Barnes combo returns, but Smith is coming off the worst offensive season of his career and a four-year slide in OPS. During spring training, it was learned that Smith played with a deep bone bruise in his right ankle for much of the 2024 season. Roberts offered that as a partial explanation for the down year, but Smith downplayed it. Whichever is the truth, Smith had a good series in Tokyo, going 2 for 4 with a double and five walks in the two games.
BENCH
With Betts (illness) and Freeman (rib) unavailable for the games in Tokyo, the Dodgers have already tapped into their position-player depth with Hernandez and Rojas getting starts. The plan to use a “fluid” rotation at second base and center field should keep those two busy and contributing. Where Taylor gets his at-bats – and whether his performance will merit them – is less clear.
MANAGER
The Dodgers’ history of playoff disappointment made Roberts a constant target for disgruntled fans. Then everything changed last fall. Roberts’ “surgical” handling of a limited pitching staff (Andrew Friedman’s word) was critical in the Dodgers’ first full-season championship since 1988. Suddenly, Roberts was seen as a future Hall of Famer, danced with Ice Cube to fans’ delight and he was rewarded with a new contract that makes him the highest-paid manager in baseball history. The Dodgers’ massive resources and willingness to commit them to a star-filled roster create unique challenges for Roberts as a manager – not the least of which are the annual “World Series or bust” expectations. But Roberts has shown the ability to navigate those waters before.