Los Angeles Dodgers: 3 Overlooked Storylines Heading Into Spring Training
The Dodgers head into Spring Training with one of the best 40-man rosters in all of baseball. They have stability in their infield, rotation, and bullpen and only face a few questions heading into the regular season. With the core of their roster still in tack, this Spring Training might be more about evaluating their young prospects. However, that doesn’t mean they are short of storylines to monitor before Opening Day.
The prospective Los Angeles Dodgers Opening Day roster isn’t drastically different from their World Series roster. We already know six of the eight starters that will be on the field at the start of the season. The central questions that have been getting a lot of attention are the left field and catching timeshare. Spring Training will inevitably influence Dave Roberts’ decision at these positions, but aside from those question, there are some other overlooked storylines.
Other questions about the Dodgers fifth starter and setup man also received some attention, but there is more to examine under the hood. Starting with the losses of Yu Darvish, Brandon Morrow, and Tony Watson.
These three played a critical role in the Dodgers advancing to their first World Series in 29 years. With Darvish and Morrow now in Chicago and Watson still on the open market, one of the first things the Dodgers need to do is find replacements.
Scott Alexander’s role in the bullpen
The Dodgers made a move in early January to trade for left-handed reliever Scott Alexander from the Royals. The move cemented their decision to move on from Tony Watson and means Alexander or Tony Cingrani will assume the role he had during the second half of the season.
Alexander comes to Los Angeles with great promise. In his first full season with the Royals, Alexander was stellar posting a 2.58 ERA in 58 appearances over 69 innings. Those numbers were good enough to earn him a 1.1 WAR (Wins Above Replacement) which ranked third on his team among relievers.
Alexander is the favorite over Cingrani to assume the role left vacant by Watson. He was great at throwing up scoreless innings, finishing the season with a 78.1% LOB (Left On-base) and a 0.39 HR/9 ratio. When comparing his numbers to Watson, Alexander stacks up better than Watson.
Last season with the Dodgers Watson had a 2.70 ERA in 24 appearances over 20 innings. Over the full season with the Pirates and Dodgers, Watson had a 3.38 ERA in 71 appearances in over 66 innings. So based on last season’s performances, the Dodgers significantly upgraded their bullpen by trading for Alexander.
Alexander was yet another move by Andrew Friedman that didn’t generate the big headlines but is one that will help solidify the bullpen. The Dodgers got a younger, cheaper and more efficient reliever. Not to mention Alexander is under team control until the 2020 season when he becomes arbitration eligible. The only question about Alexander is whether he can assume the role that Brandon Morrow left and become the Dodgers new set-up man. It will be interesting if Roberts takes a flyer on Alexander in that role or if Pedro Baez emerges as the next setup man.
Corey Seager’s Throwing Elbow and Back Concerns
Why is nobody making a bigger deal about Corey Seager’s injuries? Have Dodger fans forgotten that Seager missed the NLCS with an ailing back injury that hindered him when he was playing defense? What about the elbow soreness that limited his throwing and caused him to miss time in August?
The Dodgers front office went into the offseason hoping to avoid surgery on Seager’s elbow, and they did. Seager participated in an extensive rehab program that focused on rest, physical therapy and strengthening exercise to help heal both injuries.
On one note, it’s great that Seager was able to avoid surgery this offseason. On another note, Seager’s throwing program will already be delayed this Spring Training, raising the question of if the injuries fully healed. If rest and therapy didn’t fully treat the injuries could we see lingering effects this season or worse could Seager need surgery during the season making him unavailable.
Apparently, this is pure speculation and worst case scenario. But on Friday, Seager said he had been limited to throwing 100 feet and has yet to throw to bases. Seager limped his way to the end of the season, and there wasn’t anything done to assure the injuries would go away. There’s no doubt Dodger fans are glad their All-Star shortstop was able to avoid surgery. But you can’t help but be a little concerned that Seager is still behind on his throwing program.
Logan Forsythe’s Rebound
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Logan Forsythe was one of the few “misses” for the Dodgers last season. He had a down season slashing .224/.351/.327 with only six home runs and 36 RBI. This was far from the production the Dodgers were expecting after his solid 2016 season with the Rays where he hit .264 with 20 home runs.
Despite the down season last year, the Dodgers still picked up his $8.5 million team option. He’s expected to be the primary second baseman again but could split time with the recently re-signed Chase Utley. In reality, this is a true make or break season for Forsythe if he wants to stay with the Dodgers. Forsythe is heading into his 8th major league season and is an unrestricted free agent in 2019 and isn’t getting any younger at age 31.
The Dodgers have a surplus of outfielders, which include Kike Hernandez and Chris Taylor whom both can play the infield. It will be interesting to see if Roberts is willing to consider either at second base if Forsythe struggles and Utley can’t meet the demand of playing every day.
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Forsythe did finish the season strong with a good showing during the postseason where he hit .297 with 6 RBI and two stolen bases. At the start of Spring Training, this is without a doubt Forsythe’s job to lose. I think Forsythe will have an excellent, bounce-back season, but it’s worth pointing out that Dave Roberts does have options to replace him should he have a repeat of last season.