{"id":102155,"date":"2025-10-03T08:23:33","date_gmt":"2025-10-03T08:23:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=102155"},"modified":"2025-10-03T08:23:41","modified_gmt":"2025-10-03T08:23:41","slug":"%e2%9a%be-dodgers-roster-twist-nlds-prediction-sees-clayton-kershaw-back-in-the-mix-while-michael-conforto-is-left-off-veterans-return-tough-cuts-made-and-the-burning-question-is","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=102155","title":{"rendered":"\u26be DODGERS ROSTER TWIST: NLDS prediction sees Clayton Kershaw back in the mix while Michael Conforto is left off \u2014 veterans return, tough cuts made, and the burning question is\u2026 will this gamble be enough to power L.A. through October?..ll"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Dodgers'<\/p>\n

The Los Angeles Dodgers took care of business at home during the Wild Card round, in the process of sweeping the Cincinnati Reds to set up the NLDS series everyone in baseball wants to see.<\/p>\n

The team hit the road on Thursday \u2014 heading east for a major showdown with the Philadelphia Phillies.<\/p>\n

The Wild Card roster had a few surprises on it that nobody saw coming. Will the group versus Philadelphia be identical, or will manager Dave Roberts opt to change it up? Is Anthony Banda and\/or Michael Conforto coming back onto the active roster?<\/p>\n

We try to best piece together the ideal 26-man group that could be seen in what should be a highly competitive series featuring two juggernaut squads.<\/p>\n

Position Players<\/strong><\/h2>\n

DH: Shohei Ohtani<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ohtani will look to continue his torrid postseason start after going 3-for-9 with two homers and four runs batted-in during the Wild Card round.<\/p>\n

C: Will Smith, Dalton Rushing, Ben Rortvedt<\/strong><\/p>\n

Having a third catcher on the roster does give the Dodgers some real flexibility. Smith by all accounts will try to set up shop behind the plate. With the trickiness of a bone issue in the hand, no one really knows whether a full game behind the plate could have an adverse impact on his ability to not only catch but also throw.<\/p>\n

Having Smith even as an elite pinch hitter off the bench is a must. Rushing also stays on the roster due to his ability to slug as a left-handed bench option. Rortvedt has been rock-solid filling in for the All-Star catcher.<\/p>\n

INF: Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, Max Muncy, Miguel Rojas<\/strong><\/p>\n

INF\/OF: Kik\u00e9 Hern\u00e1ndez, Hyeseong Kim, Tommy Edman<\/strong><\/p>\n

OF: Andy Pages, Teoscar Hernandez, Alex Call <\/strong><\/p>\n

Justin Dean was a surprise entry on the Wild Card roster. He was subbed on to be a defensive replacement in centerfield in both games. In his one opportunity to make a play in Game 1, Dean dove for a ball he probably would\u2019ve expected to catch. It deflected off his hand for what amounted to be a base hit.<\/p>\n

With Dean being practically a zero at the plate, if he\u2019s not absolutely excellent defensively in center, there\u2019s really no need for him on this roster even with Tommy Edman nursing a bulky ankle.<\/p>\n

Call does remain on the roster due to his ability to hit lefties. Philadelphia has a host of very good left-handed pitchers. He can grind out at-bats, play decent-to-good defense in the outfield, and also provide the team with some speed. He and Kim figure to give the outfield cover while Pages and the Hernandezes man the other spots.<\/p>\n

As was the case in the Wild Card round, Conforto will be left off the roster.<\/p>\n

Pitchers<\/h2>\n

SP: Shohei Ohtani, Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow<\/strong><\/p>\n

With Ohtani expected to go in Game 1, it\u2019ll be interesting to see how Game 2 shakes out. There\u2019s a real world where if the Dodgers win the first contest, Glasnow will go in Game 2. The home\/away splits for Snell seems to indicate a real preference in the lefty taking the ball in Game 3 back at Dodger Stadiium. Yamamoto would surely pitch in a Game 4 situation.<\/p>\n

Should LA lose Game 1, Snell will be on regular rest and could very well pitch Game 2 regardless of the result. This would then push Glasnow back as a long reliever\/multiple innings option out of the \u2018pen.<\/p>\n

At the very least, the rotation seems to be in a very good spot moving forward.<\/p>\n

Relievers: Blake Treinen, Roki Sasaki, Alex Vesia, Anthony Banda, Ben Casparius, Emmet Sheehan, Tanner Scott, Justin Wrobleski, Clayton Kershaw <\/strong><\/p>\n

There are a few tough calls within this group. Chief among them is keeping Edgardo Henriquez off this roster. The stuff is undeniable given he\u2019s one of the hardest-throwing relievers in the sport.<\/p>\n

Having said that, his control has been a major issue. It reared its ugly head against the Reds in the Game 1 of the Wild Card round. Philadelphia\u2019s lineup is considerably better, and with Henriquez striking out far less bats than one would think given his velocity, there\u2019s real doubt as to whether he\u2019d be effective versus the Phillies.<\/p>\n

Banda gets the nod over Henriquez given the fact left-handed hitters are hitting .153 off him on the year. One can see Banda in the middle innings when having to face the tandem of Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber.<\/p>\n

On the other side of the equation, if the team is sacrificing velocity for effectiveness with Banda instituted, the opposite line of thinking comes with keeping Wrobleski on the team with Dreyer coming off of it. Wrobleski in comparison has better pure stuff, and is a guy who can take down multiple innings. His swing-and-miss ability surpasses Dreyer\u2019s \u2014 and with Kershaw coming on, Dreyer isn\u2019t really needed.<\/p>\n

While he didn\u2019t feature in the Wild Card round, Scott surely will get his chances versus a lineup with some true left-handed boppers. The question will be when Scott receives those opportunities. The odds are they\u2019ll be in lower leverage spots.<\/p>\n

Casparius also enters the fold having been tinkering in Triple-A for some time. He has the experience pitching in the postseason, and as Sasaki has recently shown, we\u2019ve seen what a reset stint down in the minor leagues can do for a young pitcher.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

How will manager Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts construct his 26-man roster for the NLDS series versus the Philadelphia Phillies?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":8,"featured_media":102158,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-102155","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mlb"],"yoast_head":"\n\u26be DODGERS ROSTER TWIST: NLDS prediction sees Clayton Kershaw back in the mix while Michael Conforto is left off \u2014 veterans return, tough cuts made, and the burning question is\u2026 will this gamble be enough to power L.A. through October?..ll - NEWS USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/sportnews.azontree.com\/?p=102155\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u26be DODGERS ROSTER TWIST: NLDS prediction sees Clayton Kershaw back in the mix while Michael Conforto is left off \u2014 veterans return, tough cuts made, and the burning question is\u2026 will this gamble be enough to power L.A. through October?..ll - 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