The Los Angeles Dodgers’ Jack Flaherty will start Game 1 of the National League Division Series this weekend, followed by rookie Yoshinobu Yamamoto in Game 2.
Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes said Wednesday that the team has not finalized plans for Game 3 and possibly Game 4, but Walker Buehler and rookie Landon Knack will play.
The Dodgers will face the winner of the NL Wild Card Series between the Atlanta Braves and the San Diego Padres, who currently lead the best-of-three series 1-0.
The best-of-five NLDS kicks up Saturday at Dodger Stadium.
Last month, manager Dave Roberts hinted that Shohei Ohtani could be an option on the mound later in the playoffs, stating “anything’s possible” and “not a 0 percent chance.”
Gomes said Wednesday that Ohtani will continue throwing bullpen sessions while he recovers from his second elbow surgery a year ago, but there are no plans for him to face live hitters, let alone take the mound in a game.
“We don’t anticipate him pitching in the postseason,” according to the general manager.
Instead, the Dodgers will rely on Ohtani’s bat to carry them, like he did in his record-breaking rookie season with the club.
The Dodgers acquired Flaherty from the Detroit Tigers at the July trading deadline.
The transaction returned him to his hometown. The Dodgers’ right-hander pitched 55⅓ innings with a 3.58 ERA in 10 starts.
Yamamoto has made only four starts since returning off the disabled list, after missing nearly three months with an arm ailment. In his final tune-up against Colorado last weekend, the right-hander allowed two runs. He pitched for five innings, his longest outing since returning.
Yamamoto may be an MLB rookie, but he has plenty of big-game experience in his home country, having pitched in the 2022 Japan Series, where he guided the Orix Buffaloes to victory, and the Tokyo Olympics, where Japan won gold.
“I don’t think Yama’s going to be fazed by the big moment,” Gomes said on a conference call. “If anything, I think he’s going to thrive on it.”
The Dodgers finished the regular season with baseball’s best record (98-64), earning the NL’s top spot and ensuring home-field advantage throughout the playoffs.
That handed them a bye, and the squad is off for five days before the NLDS. The layoff has not been good to them in the last two years. Last year, Arizona swept them out of the division series, and in 2022, they lost 3-1 to the Padres.
“Our guys are tired of it,” Roberts remarked about the early departures.
Roberts has observed a different mindset in the clubhouse this time around.
“I see some more hunger and sharpness. “I like it,” he said. “Not to say that guys weren’t prepared or trying or cared, but there’s a different level of intensity.”
The Dodgers could use the extra time off this year, with numerous players recovering and a heavily taxed bullpen in need of recuperation.
All-Star first baseman Freddie Freeman and shortstop Miguel Rojas are making recovery following recent injuries. Roberts believes Freeman will be in the starting lineup, though his right ankle ailment may hamper him defensively.
Freeman is swinging in the batting cage and will most likely face live pitching on Thursday or Friday.
Rojas has a torn left adductor muscle. He had an injection last week and will need surgery after the season, but he is anticipated to play.
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