January 21st, 2017 at 7:00 am 
by Jacob Rudner With the off-season winding down and spring training less than a month away, most Dodger fans are focusing on what the team needs as opposed to what they already have. So with that being said, let’s start looking at the guys already on the roster who are ready to contribute right now.
The first person we’re going to look at is sophomore right-hander Ross Stripling. Stripling most memorably started off his rookie campaign last season in always-hostile AT&T Park in San Francisco, where he threw 7.1 innings of no-hit ball in his MLB debut game.
The 27-year-old Blue Bell, Pennsylvania native was sent down and called back up several times this past season but, when all was said and done, he finished fourth on the team in innings pitched and was a major contributor throughout the season in both the rotation and out of the bullpen. Ross finished the season owning a record of 5-9, a 3.96 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP in exactly 100 innings pitched.
It’s impossible to argue that Stripling’s seven no-hit innings against the Giants in his major league debut on April 8, 2016 wasn’t the highlight of his rookie season. (Photo credit – Jose Sanchez)
I recently had an opportunity to talk with Ross about how his off-season was going and what he is doing to continue his success in the majors this year. We also talked about some of his goals for the coming season. His answers were both interesting and gave great insight to what it truly takes to be a big leaguer.
First, we took some time to discuss how the off-season was going and how he is using last season to influence his workouts right now. I had asked him what were some things he wanted to improve upon from last season and what he is currently doing to help get ready to accomplish them. Immediately, Ross shared that his biggest issue from last season “was definitely my inability to get through the lineup a third time.”
If you recall, there was a point in the middle of last season where Stripling was moved to extended spring training in Arizona for about a month to, in his words, “become more physical”. In other words, the Dodgers wanted him to work on his stamina and just simply get stronger. Now, Ross is looking to continue that stamina training as he is “really focused on putting on weight and being as in-shape as possible”. Ross said that he is working out “five days a week with a focus on putting on mass and putting on good weight.” By the start of this new season fans can expect a much stronger and “more physical” Ross Stripling than we saw last year.
Now his goals.
I asked Ross if he could share his goal for the upcoming season. His answer proved a couple things to me. The first would be his true attitude of ‘team first’ and whatever it takes to win. The second was how flexible he plans to be heading into the new season and how he possesses an open-minded attitude. Lastly, he proves in this small-but-powerful answer that his best teacher is his mistakes and successes. So, due to the greatness of his answer, I will leave it up to you to interpret it for yourself.
In addition to his pitching, Stripling proved that he can (occasionally) be handy with a bat, having collected two hits and one RBI in 2016. (Photo credit – Ron Cervenka)
“My goal headed into the season is just to build on what I was able to do last year,” Stripling said. “Whether I’m in a starting position or a relief role, I was able to have different successes and failures in each and just want to learn from what went right and wrong and build on it. I know what it takes to be a starter, to be in a long-relief role or to come in and get one or two outs because I’ve done it all. So hopefully that gives me experience and confidence that I’m able to build on and use it to get big league hitters out consistently.”
Dodger fans should be able to look forward to a new and improved Ross Stripling. Based on his off-season, his character and his proven success, I will watch out for him and you should too. It truly was a pleasure to talk to someone who has the potential to truly be great.
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I like people who can be honest with themselves about their shortcomings.
Ross is easily one of the nicest and most approachable guys on the planet. He is also one of the most honest. He is perhaps the Dodgers best secret weapon. Good things await.
Great job Jacob.
Thank You!
Ross is a favorite on TBLA. Really enjoyed your article Jacob.
How did you happen to meet or arrange to meet Ross?
When Ross was with the Lookouts in Chattanooga in 2013 I sent a baseball card to him asking for an autograph, complete with a self-addressed envelope and US postage stamp to Canada.
He signed the card but smudged it a bit when he put it back into the sleeve. He returned it with a hand written apology for smudging it and offered to sign another card if I sent him one. I didn’t send another as I was more than pleased with the one I had and the hand written note, which I still have. I did write back and thanked him for the autograph and for taking the time to write a note to me.
I actually met Ross a couple of years ago and he was nice enough to talk to me about his offseason for this piece.
That’s a great story with the autograph! Sometimes, even if the autograph isn’t perfect, it is worth more when it has a story behind it. Sounds like you’ve got a good one!
Ross seems like a good guy who’s battled back from adversity. I think his future is in relief, but who knows? But 100 innings put him fourth on the team last year? What a rotation.
I do not know what Ross’ ceiling is as a SP, but I would guess it to be a #3. Kershaw, Hill, and Maeda are locks for 1-3. So Ross should get a good look at Glendale to grab #4 or #5. If not as a SP, I do believe he can be the lock down setup RH the Dodgers are looking for. He doesn’t need the comparative pressure, but I think he can succeed with the Andrew Miller role.
Going into spring, it seems like the first four rotation spots are actually locks. If all goes well, it should look something like Kershaw, Hill, Maeda, Urias. But, I do agree with you that Ross is definitely in the mix for the fifth spot as well as a long relief man. I also thing he is very valuable to the Dodgers as a swing man. Meaning he would be a long reliever but is available for spot starts. It will be interesting to see how they handle him this year especially with no innings limit.
Jacob, while I believe that Urias is eventually headed to the top of the rotation, I purposely left him out as a lock because he is still going to be on an innings watch with options. As long as Kazmir & McCarthy are on the roster they are going to get a long look to fill the back end of the rotation in ST. Neither will displace the top 3, but they could block others with options and who are on an innings watch. And while I think that Ryu is probably done, he is going to have ST to prove he isn’t (and I do hope he isn’t). Since I am a strong advocate for the farm, and because it is not my money, I would select Ross Stripling to be on the 25 man over any of Kazmir/McCarthy/Ryu. I still see no way he is left off the 25 man come April 3. ST is going to be very enlightening.