The Los Angeles Dodgers have hit a rough patch lately — and it couldn’t come at a worse time. With the San Diego Padres overtaking the division lead and a crucial series looming this weekend, the Dodgers find themselves scrambling for consistency. As the reigning NL West and World Series champions, the expectations are sky-high. But for Freddie Freeman, the focus remains inward.
“(Division) won’t be tied if we don’t win games. So that’s kind of our main focus right now. If we worry about outside things –– we gotta worry about inside things right now,” Freeman told the media.
The bullpen has been the clearest weak spot for L.A., blowing late leads and making it difficult for the Dodgers to string together wins. And there’s little hope for immediate improvement.
“What happened was the Dodgers’ belief in the recovering health of their bullpen. And, um, yeah, unless you want to bring Bobby Miller up from Oklahoma City to close games (not a bad idea, eh?), it’s not getting fixed anytime soon,” wrote the Los Angeles Times’ Bill Plaschke.
The hits keep coming. Michael Kopech made a rehab appearance Thursday and struggled. Then on Friday, the Dodgers received more bad news regarding reliever Brusdar Graterol.
“Graterol underwent surgery after the World Series to repair the labrum in his right shoulder. It's a major procedure with a long timetable for recovery, and Graterol was not expected to pitch this year before the All-Star break. Unsurprisingly, the Dodgers placed Graterol on the injured list in March. Although Graterol had reported to the Dodgers' Camelback Ranch complex in Arizona to begin his rehab, manager Dave Roberts said Wednesday the pitcher has not been cleared to begin a throwing program. Now, Roberts said, it appears unlikely Graterol will have enough time to pitch in 2025,” SI’s JP Hoornstra reported.
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Graterol hasn’t thrown a pitch all season, but he was viewed as a potential weapon late in the year — either in the postseason push or during October itself. Now, that possibility appears gone, yet another blow to a bullpen already plagued by inconsistency and bad luck.
As the season heads into its most critical stretch, the Dodgers will have to manage without another key reliever — and hope their current roster can hold the line.