Dodgers Dugout: Clayton Kershaw is back (so is Jack)

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Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell and the Dodgers reunited with two pitchers this week.

Well, to the relief of many Dodgers fans, Clayton Kershaw has decided to return to the Dodgers, agreeing to a one-year deal with a player option for 2025. Financial terms have not been announced.

The timing is ideal, because the Dodgers can sign him and immediately put him on the 60-day IL, which won’t cost them a spot on the 40-man roster.

Kershaw, who turns 36 in March, had surgery on his shoulder in November and is not expected back until after the All-Star break.

Kershaw was going to sign with the Dodgers or Texas Rangers, with some thinking he might be leaning toward the World Series-champion Rangers. But as Jack Harris pointed out in his story:

“The Dodgers offered Kershaw the most familiar setting for his first extended rehabilitation process — including having his surgeon, Dr. Neal ElAttrache, on staff as their head team physician — and will allow him to spend more time back home in Texas while recovering early in the season.”

Kershaw had a 2.46 ERA in 131-2/3 innings last season, the most innings he has pitched since 2019. He will be a welcome addition to a rotation that has a plethora of arms coming off of injuries. He’s not the pitcher he was 10 years ago, but he’s still better than 95% of starting pitchers, at least in the regular season.

Buehler won’t pitch early in season

Walker Buehler, who had Tommy John surgery in August 2022, will be held back from pitching at the start of the season (probably until May) so he will remain strong through the end of the season. Buehler probably won’t pitch much more than 150 innings this season so as to not overburden his recovering arm, so it’s better to shift those innings to the end of the season rather than the beginning.

“There’s a little bit of art to it, a little bit of science to it, in terms of how fast I can build up,” Buehler said. “I’m sure I’ll make some rehab starts and hopefully get into the rotation in the early part of the year, and then we’ll kind of go from there.

“We have a lot of depth, a lot of talent. Since I’ve been here, it’s never been a one-man show, and it’s not going to be this year, either, so I don’t feel this crazy burden to throw 220 innings or anything like that. But I want to be really good when I play, and I want to play a good amount.”

Ryan is back, Caleb is gone

The Dodgers re-signed right-handed reliever Ryan Brasier to a two-year, $9-million deal. Brasier was one of the team’s best relievers last season, finishing with a 0.70 ERA and one save in 38-2/3 innings, giving up 18 hits and 10 walks while striking out 38.

To make room on the roster, the Dodgers traded left-handed reliever Caleb Ferguson to the New York Yankees. Ferguson was very erratic last season, at times shutting down opponents and at times getting lit up more than a pinball machine. In return, they get lefty reliever Matt Gage, who has major league experience, and pitching prospect Christian Zazueta.

That leaves Alex Vesia and Ryan Yarbrough as the only left-handers in the bullpen, unless Gage makes the team. But here’s a tip for you who overly rely on analytics. Good right-handed pitchers can get left-handers out. They hit .226 against Brasier and .209 against Brusdar Graterol last season. They hit .222 against Evan Phillips. It’s nice to have a dependable lefty in the bullpen, but it’s not fatal if you don’t.

Projected Dodgers bullpen:

Ryan Brasier
J.P. Feyereisen
Brusdar Graterol
Joe Kelly
Evan Phillips
Blake Treinen
Alex Vesia
Ryan Yarbrough

Of course, the likelihood this is the exact bullpen on opening day is slim.

Welcome back, Jack

Last week, I told you that our Dodgers beat writer, Jack Harris, was laid off among the more than 100 Times employees who were dismissed. However, through the borderline divine and mystical ways of union rules, none of which anyone fully understands, Jack was able to be saved and is back with us to cover the Dodgers again. What better time to do a Q&A with him?

Q: It’s great news that you are back with us and covering the Dodgers again. Most everyone who reads this newsletter was very unhappy that you were let go. How have the last couple of weeks been for you?

Harris: The short answer, as you might imagine, is that it’s been pretty hectic. But, I’m just grateful to be able to stay on the beat and provide coverage about what should be a fascinating season for the team. I also can’t say thank you enough to the readers who reached out to offer support and kind words during this process. The response was incredibly meaningful.

Q: Many people already engraved the Dodgers’ name on this season’s World Series trophy. Their strengths are obvious, but what are the biggest weaknesses on the team?

Harris: For both the pitching staff and lineup, it does seem like a potentially top-heavy roster.

Offensively, what happens if Shohei Ohtani’s production dips while he works through this elbow injury? Or if Freddie Freeman and Mookie Betts get hurt and/or start showing signs of age? Players like Will Smith, Max Muncy and Teoscar Hernández provide quality depth, but can they pick up the slack for their superstar teammates if needed?

Among the pitching staff: Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow could be Cy Young candidates, but neither has pitched a full major league season. Same goes for Bobby Miller and the other talented but young arms. And while Buehler and James Paxton (and, if they indeed return in the second half, Kershaw and Dustin May) form another strong group of depth options, they all have troublesome injury histories.

Basically, the ceiling for this club should be incredibly high, but for spending $1 billion this offseason, the floor still seems somewhat low. Most likely, the team will be able to withstand the inevitable wave of injuries and inconsistent performances that come over the course of a season. But, if you look hard enough, a lot of the players that will be asked to play a big role have lingering questions that could be cause for concern.

Q. The question I get more than any other the last few weeks is: Will the Dodgers re-sign Kiké Hernández? Your thoughts?

Harris: While a reunion between the Dodgers and Kiké made sense for much of the winter, the current state of the roster makes the fit difficult to envision. The team could have brought him back earlier this offseason to add to its mix of part-time utility options, but instead opted for a more established (and expensive) everyday player like Hernández.

As things stand, the opening day roster likely will include Betts, Freeman, Ohtani, Smith, Muncy, T. Hernández, James Outman, Gavin Lux, Jason Heyward, Chris Taylor, Miguel Rojas, Manuel Margot and Austin Barnes.

That’s 13 (and not including Miguel Vargas). Of course, possessing versatile depth is always important, and adding another player like Kiké could give the team cover in case of injuries or other setbacks. Kiké, though, almost certainly wants to go somewhere he knows he can play regularly. So, while a return to the Dodgers isn’t impossible, current circumstances make it look unlikely.

Q: A lot of readers are nervous that the Dodgers “don’t have a real closer, like Josh Hader.” Seems to me that Evan Phillips did a solid job last season. Do the Dodgers really need a big-name closer?

Harris: I don’t think the team is opposed to adding a top-of-the-line closer (there is a reason they were briefly linked to Hader earlier in the offseason). But, the cost always has been prohibitive in their eyes.

That’s especially true when you already have someone as dependable as Phillips who can cover that role. So, I’d expect a setup similar to last year: with Phillips getting most of the save opportunities, and Graterol and Brasier serving as the de facto setup men. That group isn’t overflowing with star power, but did enough down the stretch last year to give the Dodgers one of the better late-game bullpens in the majors.

Q: Judging by the media at DodgerFest, there will be, conservatively, at least twice as many reporters covering the team. Do you think all the added attention will have any impact on the players?

Harris: That is definitely a conservative guess, ha ha. Between the influx of Japanese media and likely increase of attention from local outlets and news stations, it might be more like a three- or four-fold increase among the daily press corps, particularly on the road.

It absolutely could have an impact on other players, assuming Ohtani isn’t addressing the media very often. Ohtani stories will need to be written. So if he isn’t the one talking — and time will tell how accessible he is on a day-to-day basis — those questions will be asked of others.

Maybe that won’t be an annoyance. Perhaps it will be fun for them to discuss their new superstar teammate, especially if he and the team are doing well.

But veteran players, typically, are keenly aware of how other stars on their team are treated. Ohtani is obviously a unique example who has to operate by somewhat different media rules, given the intense global interest he attracts. But if he’s being held to a dramatically different standard than his teammates (especially during down points of the season), that might not go overlooked either. It’s a delicate balance the Dodgers and Ohtani will have to strike.

Q. What is a typical spring training day like for you?

Harris: On a normal day …

7:30 a.m.: Arrive at the Camelback Ranch facility. We have a media workroom located adjacent to the lobby of their complex.

8-9 a.m.: The clubhouse will open to the media, where we can talk to players as they filter in and get ready for their day.

10 a.m.: Dave Roberts will hold a scrum near the backfields, answering questions and updating reporters on that day’s information.

10:30 a.m.-noon: Roam around the backfields watching workouts, talking with coaches and grabbing individual players for interviews; then go back to the media workroom to begin writing that day’s story.

Once games start, we then either head up to the press box or drive to whichever ballpark across town the team is playing at and finish up that day’s story.

The biggest challenge: remembering to grab lunch. If you want an insider’s guide on the best fast-food/quick-service restaurants in Glendale/West Phoenix, my email inbox is open! (Side note: Will someone please open a Salad & Go in L.A. already.)

Dodgers Dugout Hall of Fame

We are in the middle of our annual Dodgers Dugout Hall of Fame voting. So far, there have been more than 25,000 ballots cast, so a big thank you to all of you who have voted. It appears we definitely will have two inductees, and perhaps three.

There is still time to vote if you haven’t. For a full recap of the ballot and bios of the players, go here.

To recap, you can vote for up to 12 people on the players ballot, and four on the non-players ballot, meaning you could vote for 16 people if you desire. But no more than 12 players and four non-players.

Whoever is named on at least 75% of the ballots will be elected. The 12 people receiving the fewest votes will be dropped from future ballots for at least the next two years. Active players or active non-players are not eligible.

How do you vote? For the players ballot, click here. For the non-players ballot, click here. Or you can email me at [email protected]. You have until Saturday at midnight to vote. Results will be announced soon after that.

Here is the ballot:

Players (vote for no more than 12)

Dusty Baker
Adrián Beltré
Ralph Branca
Ron Cey
Tommy Davis
Willie Davis
Carl Erskine
Andre Ethier
Ron Fairly
Carl Furillo
Eric Gagne
Steve Garvey
Kirk Gibson
Jim Gilliam
Pedro Guerrero
Babe Herman
Frank Howard
Tommy John
Eric Karros
Davey Lopes
Rick Monday
Manny Mota
Don Newcombe
Wes Parker
Ron Perranoski
Mike Piazza
Johnny Podres
Pee Wee Reese
John Roseboro
Bill Russell
Mike Scioscia
Gary Sheffield
Reggie Smith
Don Sutton
Dazzy Vance
Zack Wheat
Steve Yeager

Non-players (vote for no more than four)

Red Barber
Buzzie Bavasi
Fred Claire
Jerry Doggett
Leo Durocher
Helen Dell
Jaime Jarrín
Peter O’Malley
Walter O’Malley
Ross Porter
John Ramsey
Stan Wasiak

Thanks for reading and taking part.