The time has come for Dave Roberts to make a decision.
A new closer is needed by the Dodgers.
It hasn't gone according to plan for Craig Kimbrel.
The Dodgers swapped A.J. Pollock for Kimbrel six days before the start of the season.
The Dodgers didn't use Pollock's glove because they were too crowded with bats.
In came the eight-time All-Star and two-time Reliever of the Year award winner. The Dodgers would return to the World Series with the help of KimbREL.
The addition of Kimbrel, who has three losses, two blown saves and a 4.13 earned run average in 25 appearances, has been costly.
It was the same story for Kimbrel on Sunday, as he entered a game in the 10th. He allowed a game-tying single to score the ghost runner on second base. After a walk and two strikeouts, the Braves catcher took Kimbrel 396 feet to dead center on a ball that had an expected batting average of.660, missing a walk-off home run by just a few feet and falling into Bellinger's glove.
It was Brusdar Graterol who got the save in the 11th, stranding the ghost runner at third.
It was thought that Graterol would take over that closer spot for the better part of the last 12 seasons. The Dodgers were fond of using high-leverage spots in the 7th and 8th. The Dodgers decided to look outside. Despite his struggles, they brought in Kimbrel. Kimbrel had an average of 6.13 and 5.28 in the two years. After he was traded to the White Sox, he had a 5.19 earned run average.
Kimbrel was an All-Star and the Dodgers wanted him to return to his best. He hasn't yet.
There is a solution for the Dodgers.
They still have enough depth to make a change despite the injuries to their pitchers.
The ninth can be taken over by graterol at the moment. He has put up a lot of zeros in high-leverage situations, even though he hasn't been enjoying his best season.
The Dodgers can turn to a closer-by-committee role if Graterol doesn't perform well. They have an average of 0.99, 1.64 and 1.88 this year.
When he comes back, the obvious choice would be to allow Treinen to take that spot. He might not be the best option for the Dodgers.
The Dodgers turned to Urias when they needed him the most. The Dodgers loved his stuff and trusted him to finish games. While Urias isn't going to move to the closer role this year, they have another former starter with some of the most dominant stuff in baseball.
Last week, May had his first live batting practice since having Tommy John surgery. May is the perfect candidate to close out games in September and October because the Dodgers want him to be a starter.
In the 2020 World Series, May had four blank outings, including five huge outs in the 6th, 7th and 8th frames of a key Game 5 World Series win.
The change will be made in 2020 after the playoffs.
They can't spend time this year.
The Dodgers hold a two-game lead over the Padres in the NL West, while the Giants are in third place. There is no need for a divisional race in L.A. Business needs to be taken care of now.
Dave Roberts is making a change at the back of his team.
Pick up the phone. It's time to make that decision.
All Rights Reserved © 2024
