MLB insider horribly misses the mark with Dodgers pitching comments

In 2024, the Dodgers went into the World Series with just three starters — only one of whom was truly reliable — and a dynamite bullpen that had bailed them out time and time again in the regular season. In 2025, it was the exact opposite: a fully healthy, dominant rotation with an injured and absolutely pathetic bullpen.

During both seasons, the Dodgers' pitching staff was riddled with injuries. Last year, Walker Buehler and Yoshinobu Yamamoto were healthy by the postseason, but spent significant amounts of time on the IL, Tyler Glasnow was on the 60-day IL with elbow tendinitis in October, and Clayton Kershaw had a bone spur in his toe.

This year, almost every reliever on roster spent some amount of time on the IL and performances tanked, leading them to either not be healthy enough for the postseason or not trustworthy enough to be used. Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates, their two highest-paid relievers, were left off the World Series roster due to injuries and underperformance, respectively.

The rotation still managed to pull off an absolutely astounding feat this postseason, but the Dodgers just got very, very lucky that everyone was healthy in time.

MLB insider Jayson Stark, in an appearance on Foul Territory, recently said, "Pitchers have never pitched less, and never been less healthy. When you look at this, and you look at what that team did and what the Dodgers rotation did throughout the postseason, I hope there's a lesson in that for other teams."

Since when have the Dodgers been a shining example of pitching health?

MLB insider Jayson Stark makes Dodgers fans laugh with praise of LA's rotation health

The injuries to the pitching staff over the past two years have been the most baffling, exasperating part of recent Dodgers history. They just cannot, for the life of them, keep arms healthy. And no one seems to know why.

Apart from Yoshinobu Yamamoto, all three Dodgers postseason starters were injured in 2025. Snell and Glasnow missed months, and Shohei Ohtani didn't pitch until mid-June. Kershaw didn't pitch until mid-May. Tony Gonsolin started the year on the IL, then pitched just seven starts before going back onto the IL for the rest of the season. The fact that Yamamoto, Snell, Glasnow, and Ohtani all managed to be healthy by October felt like a downright miracle.

There's certainly a cautionary lesson in what the Dodgers are doing with their pitchers. What the rotation managed to do in the offseason, and the amount of innings they were able to pitch, was extraordinary. It was also deeply improbable, given all of the issues that plagued them throughout the regular season.