Inside The Dodgers

Dodgers Calling Up Starting Pitcher for Friday's Series Opener vs Cardinals

Sep 28, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Justin Wrobleski (70) delivers a pitch in the ninth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images
Sep 28, 2024; Denver, Colorado, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers relief pitcher Justin Wrobleski (70) delivers a pitch in the ninth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

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The Los Angeles Dodgers are once again going deep into the organization's pitching depth, calling up another pitcher to make a major league spot-start against the St. Louis Cardinals on Friday.

Lefty Justin Wrobleski, who has already made a couple of appearances for the Dodgers, is set to pitch against the Cardinals, marking yet another pitcher that the team will roll out.

At 24 years old, the left handed pitcher ranks No. 10 in the Dodgers' prospect ranking, according to MLB Pipeline.

The Dodgers are battling major injury issues, with several key starters on the injured list. Blake Snell, Roki Sasaki, and Tyler Glasnow have missed a considerable amount of action this season with varying injuries.

More news: Dodgers Linked to Breakout Starting Pitcher in Potential Trade Deadline Move

Clayton Kershaw came back recently and made his season debut a couple of weeks ago, providing some relief to the rotation, but there are still holes.

Despite the season only being a third of the way through, Los Angeles has deployed 13 different starting pitchers.

From using a pitcher out of the bullpen as an opener to giving pitchers like Wrobleski a chance, the Dodgers have rolled out several arms just to get through the regular season, often relying on the offense producing enough to make up for any pitching inconsistency as a result of using so many pitchers.

More news: Dave Roberts Declines to Name Dodgers Closer Amid Tanner Scott's Struggles

Over the past couple of seasons, Wrobleski has featured with the Dodgers and Triple-A Oklahoma City, making appearances in the majors when needed.

Already this season, Wrobleski made two different appearances for the Dodgers, pitching a total of nine innings and giving up eight runs. He also notched eight strikeouts and three walks during his brief stint before going back down to Triple-A.

Last season, his ERA was 5.70 with a 6.44 strikeout per nine innings ratio, ranking below average among starters, and he struggled with his command, walking 3.96 batters per nine innings.

Alarmingly, the velocity on his fastball has declined from 95.1 mph last season to 94.2 mph, which has likely led to additional struggles.

There is still potential that Wrobleski can develop into a consistent, reliable end-of-rotation pitcher, given his diverse pitch mix.

He throws a fastball, cutter, slider, curveball, and changeup, which should keep hitters guessing about what pitch is coming next.

While there is still much for the 24-year-old to figure out, the Dodgers are giving him another opportunity at the major league level to figure things out.

More news: Dodgers Manager Confident LA Will Get Injured Pitchers Back, But With One Caveat

For more Dodgers news, head over to Dodgers on SI.


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Nelson Espinal
NELSON ESPINAL

Nelson Espinal lives and breathes sports. Avidly following of everything ranging from motorsports to Mixed Martial Arts to tennis, he is connected with most of the sports world at all times. His dream of writing about sports started at 16 years of age, writing for a Lakers fans blog, and his passions for sports writing has grown since. He has his Bachelor's degree in Political Science, and a minor in writing literature from the University of California, San Diego.

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