The 2020 Dodgers are stacked. This certainly does not fall into the category of “breaking news,” as every fan of MLB knows that the Dodgers depth of talented players is unsurpassed.

There is no doubt that the Dodgers will be an offensive juggernaut this season. After all, they were, by far, the best offensive team in the National League last season, and have added one of the very best position players in the game today by trading for Mookie Betts. Also, thanks to MLB and the Players Association, the team will have the benefit of a designated hitter rather than pitchers batting. They also have a 100% healthy Corey Seager, who is tearing it up in intrasquad action thus far. Matt Beaty, Edwin Rios, and Will Smith have passed their respective initiations as major leaguers, and Baseball America’s 2019 Minor League player of the year Gavin Lux is ready to take a regular spot in the lineup.

Starting pitching?

Statistically, the best staff in MLB for 2019. Yes, the team lost All-Star left-hander Hyun-Jin Ryu to free agency, David Price (acquired with Betts from the Red Sox) has opted out of the 2020 season, and Jimmy Nelson is out for the year due to recent back surgery. But a fully healthy Julio Urias is ready to step into the rotation, Alex Wood was reacquired as a free agent, and highly regarded prospects Dustin May, Tony Gonsolin, and Brusdar Graterol have demonstrated that they are more than capable if needed in the rotation.

So where, then, is the problem?

That would be the Dodgers bullpen.

The 2019 Dodgers bullpen was the Achilles heel of the team, ranking 17th in holds and 27th in blown saves. There are warning signs that the bullpen may still be an issue for the 2020 team. Elite closer Kenley Jansen has yet to show up in Summer Camp and may opt-out of the season, as his heart condition may put him into the high-risk category for COVID-19. Left-hander Scott Alexander, who celebrated his 31st birthday on Friday, also has not yet reported and may also opt-out as high risk for his type 1 diabetes. And, right-hander Pedro Baez has yet to report for undisclosed reasons.

The team does have a terrific group of young, right-hand power pitchers to bolster the relief corps. Dennis Santana should be ready to help this season, and May, Gonsolin, and Graterol may be there as well. And the team did sign Blake Treinen, who was one of the game’s elite closers as recently as 2018. Hopefully, Joe Kelly has a bounce-back year and reaches the elite status the Dodgers expected from him when they signed him as a free agent prior to the 2019 season.

But the picture is not as bright for left-handers in the bullpen. If Alexander is not available, the team is left with Adam Kolarek, who has, to date, been used almost exclusively as a lefty specialist. This might not work well with the new three-batter-minimum rule now in play. And then there’s Caleb Ferguson, who struggled last season and untested rookie Victor Gonzalez, who appeared in all of 15 games at the Triple-A level in 2019. It is possible that Wood and/or Urias could be moved into the bullpen, but both have been assured spots in the Dodgers Opening Day starting rotation.

It would not be surprising for the Dodgers to make a last-minute trade for a left-handed reliever with experience in late-inning/high leverage situations. The team has the trade capital to make this type of acquisition to relieve the pressure on their Achilles heel.

  *  *  *  *  *  *