2024 World Series Champions, the Los Angeles Dodgers are on track to have the best pitching rotation in Major League Baseball next season. A month into the offseason the Dodgers signed free agent Blake Snell which was a huge move for them.
This acquisition had the baseball world talking about the Dodgers pitching going forward, especially coming off of a short list of viable players during the postseason due to injuries to their top performers in the regular season. While we do not know what the Dodgers pitching rotation will be, it could look something like this.
Blake Snell
Snell is a two-time Cy Young winner and one of the best pitchers in the league. Snell signed a five-year, $182 million contract. This past season with the San Francisco Giants, Snell had an earned run average of 3.12 with 145 strikeouts. In August, Snell threw a no-hitter over the course of a 15-inning game.
Shohei Ohtani
Ohtani, a two-way player, was not able to pitch this past year because of Tommy John surgery last September. The 2025 season will be his first year pitching with the Dodgers and fans could not be more excited. Ohtani’s career ERA is 3.01 and he has thrown 608 strikeouts.
Ohtani has already won countless awards in his six years in the league, including being named a four-time all-star and a three-time MVP for his league. Even though Ohtani was not able to pitch, he was still able to be a designated hitter, and hit 54 home runs during the regular season with an additional three in the postseason.
Tyler Glasnow
Glasnow was traded to the Dodgers after the 2023 season from the Tampa Bay Rays and signed a five-year contract with them. During his first season in LA, he had an ERA of 3.49 and threw 168 strikeouts in his 134 innings pitched. His career ERA is slightly higher of 3.81.
Glasnow’s season got cut short when he was placed on the injured list due to elbow discomfort in mid-August. Glasnow was only supposed to be out for 15 days but he never fully healed and was out for the rest of the season. Since he has plenty of time to heal and rest, he will be expected back in full force for the 2025 season.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto
Yamamoto’s first year as a Dodger was a big one. He signed with the Dodgers in the offseason of 2023 and made his MLB debut in March 2024. Yamamoto’s ERA for the season was 3.00 and pitched 90 innings. Batters had a combined batting average of .229 while facing him.
Yamamoto’s pitching played a huge factor in how well the Dodgers did in the postseason. During game two of the World Series, he pitched for six and one-third innings. During those innings, Yamamoto only allowed one hit, which helped win them the game.
Dustin May
May’s major league debut was in 2019 with the Dodgers and he has been with them ever since. He was on the injured list for the entirety of 2024 due to a torn esophagus and is expected to return in 2025. During this offseason, the Dodgers signed May to a one-year, $2.1 million contract. May has a career ERA of 3.10 and has thrown 174 strikeouts. While facing May, batters hit .206 against him.
Dodgers Bullpen
In addition to the suspected starting pitching rotation, the Dodgers also have a very strong bullpen. Relief pitcher Alex Vesia has a career ERA of 2.89 and has pitched 214.2 innings. In the 2024 postseason, he pitched 5.2 innings and earned an ERA of 0.00. Blake Treinen had a great season in 2024 with an ERA of 1.93 and batters with an average of .194 when facing him. Treinen was re-signed by the Dodgers for two more seasons. The Dodgers closer, Michael Kopech, had an ERA of 3.26 this season and threw 88 strikeouts. During the postseason he pitched in nine innings and threw 11 strikeouts.
Job's Not Finished Yet
The Dodgers are still expected to make some more moves during the offseason. Starting pitcher and career-long Dodger, Clayton Kershaw, elected to be a free agent this year. Many fans are hoping the Dodgers re-sign him despite Kershaw declining the Dodger’s $10 million player option for 2025. The Dodgers are rumored to be interested in relief pitchers Tanner Scott, a free agent, and Devin Williams, a potential trade with the Milwaukee Brewers.
Edited by Brittany Snow
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