Dodgers: Predicting LA's Bench for Opening Day

Opening Day is less than two weeks away for the Dodgers. LA will begin their season in Colorado with Walker Buehler making his first ever Opening Day start for the club. Manager Dave Roberts has some difficult decisions to make when it comes to the rest of the Opening Day roster.

Thanks to a recent MLB rule change, all MLB teams can carry 28 players through May 1st. As opposed to previous years, there isn't a maximum number of pitchers that a team can carry. This is of course due to the shortened spring training creating a situation where some starters aren't ready to handle their usual workload.

Based on some rough math, the Dodgers could have four bench spots, if you include the DH as a position, for the first part of the season.

Which begs the question, who will be coming off the bench for a Dodgers roster loaded with talent?

Austin Barnes - C

This one is a gimme putt. Barnes will continue to be the Dodgers backup catcher as well as Clayton Kershaw's preferred choice behind the dish. But with the DH now in play, fans could see lineups this season with both Barnes and Will Smith.

Hanser Alberto - 2B/3B/SS

Through no fault of his own, Alberto is known as the guy that replaced Matt Beaty. The longtime Royals infielder can play all over the diamond and should see some starts against left-handed pitching. It would be a surprise if Alberto wasn't in the dugout at Coors Field on April 8th.

Gavin Lux - 2B/SS/OF

This could be the Dodgers former top prospect's last shot at keeping himself top-of-mind in LA's future plans. He's said and done all the right things this spring, and has stated that he's hoping to become his own version of super utility-man Chris Taylor.

Edwin Ríos - 1B/3B

Ríos had many people in the Dodgers organization excited before he missed most of 2021 season with a shoulder injury. In his first 60 games with the Dodgers, the left-handed slugger produced a .972 OPS. Now that he's fully recovered from shoulder surgery, he could also be a DH candidate.

A talented roster like this translates to a deserving player being left out. That could end up being Zach McKinstry. McKinstry could start the season in the minors with a trip to the majors or two in the cards.