Predicting the Dodgers’ bullpen hierarchy entering the 2024 season

Dodgers Bounce-Back Candidates

Los Angeles is expecting two bullpen pieces to return from injury after having the same shoulder surgery a month apart in late 2022. J.P Feyereisen has yet to throw a pitch for the Dodgers, but when healthy, he showed flashes of success, including during a shortened 2022, when he didn’t give up a run in 24.1 innings. Another pitcher returning from injury is veteran Blake Treinen, who will not start the year as a high-leverage option, but could be a lockdown late-inning piece if he proves he can return to his 2021 form. Both coming off injury, Feyereisen and Treinen could be strong options for the sixth or seventh innings before Dave Roberts goes to Graterol and Phillips.

With both lefties Caleb Ferguson and Victor Gonzalez departing to the Yankees in moves to clear space on the 40-man roster, California native lefty Alex Vesia will need to pick up some of their workload. Vesia, after two stellar seasons in 2021 and 2022, struggled in 2023 with an ERA north of four, and looks to lower his inflated hits per nine innings that jumped by about 3.5 last season.

There are still expected to be others in the mix as the roster pans out toward the end of spring, with pitchers like Emmet Sheehan and Daniel Hudson potentially in the running to be bullpen options as well. As the attention has been focused on the star-studded rotation, Dodgers fans should look forward to a lockdown bullpen with better depth and championship potential.