The Los Angeles ‘ steady march towards consecutive World Series championships continues.
After defeating the Philadelphia Phillies in four games during the NLDS, a spot in the NLCS awaits Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, and the rest of the Boys in Blue.
As we did prior to the Wild Card and NLDS, this roster projection aims to assemble the group that Dave Roberts might field against the winner of the Chicago Cubs vs. Milwaukee Brewers series.
One notable player will be sidelined with an injury, while another will return to the squad after not appearing in either of the first two rounds.
Two-way (1): Shohei Otani
Ohtani pitched well in Game 1 of the NLDS, but struggled tremendously at the plate. The hope is that he can enjoy a mental reset over the next few days. Fortunately for Ohtani, neither the Cubs nor the Brewers have elite talent on the left side compared to the Rangers’ group of Suarez, Christopher Sanchez and Jesus Luzardo.
Starting pitchers (3): Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow.
Along with Ohtani, this immensely talented quartet will once again be called upon to carry the forward. On Thursday night, Glasnow had a great performance in a decisive series-ending win. Snell was suspended throughout the postseason. Yamamoto will be looking to recover from an underwhelming start to the third race (by his standards).
The most appealing factor for the NLCS revolves around the order in which these pitchers are used. We’ve seen Ohtani struggle as a starter, but even more so in his at-bat the day after pitching. Therefore, with an off day after Game 2, it might make sense to have Ohtani have the ball, and perhaps Snell to take the ball in Game 1 of the next series.
Relief pitchers (9): Emmett Sheehan, Clayton Kershaw, Blake Treinen, Aki Sasaki, Alex Bashear, Jack Dryer, Anthony Banda, Justin Robleski, Ben Casparius.
Tanner Scott will reportedly not be available until the World Series if the make it that far in the postseason. He was replaced by Wrobleski midway through the series, but given the speed he brings from the left side and ability to pitch multiple innings, it is expected that “Wolobo” will remain on the roster.
Casparius is the only one who joins the group. He was waiting on the wing for his chance to make his mark on the team. The need to add another right-handed reliever for balance and as a potential innings eater. Edgardo Henriquez may not be a realistic option in the wild card round due to his lack of control.
Kyle Hart could end up being the guy to watch here. A more speculative, but not completely unrealistic option is Kirby Yates. Since it will be a seven-game series, the presence of relief pitchers (Kershaw, Sheehan, Sasaki) who can pitch multiple innings will be extremely important.
Position Players (13): Will Smith, Ben Rotvedt, Freddie Freeman, Miguel Rojas, Tommy Edman, Max Muncy, Hyesung Kim, Mookie Betts, Teoscar Hernandez, Kiké Hernandez, Alex Cole, Justin Dean, Andy Pages
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With Smith looking healthy, the could roll the dice and opt for a more diverse roster by removing Rushing from the team. There is also a world where Rotvedt is removed from the rushing team, given the fact that he has much more power and ability at the plate. But for now, Roltvedt is the guy who is creating the typical “vibe” for this team.
When you examine the entire team, nothing could be more surprising. Dean will remain as a center-field pinch runner and defensive sub. Cole will have real value in this upcoming series considering his performance against the Phillies against left-handed pitchers, and given the tough left-handed pitching LA will face against either the Cubs (Shota Imanaga, Matt Boyd, Caleb Thielver, Drew Pomerantz) or the Brewers (Jose Quintana, Jared Koenig, Aaron Ashby, Robert Gasser).
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Rojas, Edman, Freeman and Muncy all have injuries, but with time off they could be on the roster without fear of being replaced.
Photo credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
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