Justin Wrobleski was an All-Star this year, but there is about to be no room for him in the Los Angeles Dodgers rotation, despite their implementation of a six-man rotation.
Most teams struggle with using a six-man rotation because it cuts an arm out of the bullpen. That has not been the case for the Dodgers for most of the year because, for one, their starters are elite, and one of them does not count as a pitcher on the roster.
Wrobleski, Tarik Skubal, Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Roki Sasaki and Eric Lauer are the Dodgers' current rotation, but Tyler Glasnow is close to returning. Shohei Ohtani is taking steps toward a return as well. Snell, Skubal and Yamamoto are not going anywhere, and Sasaki has been phenomenal after the Dodgers got him a bigger glove and did a deep dive into some of his issues.
When Glasnow and Ohtani are back, Wrobleski and Lauer are the strongest candidates to be bumped. Lauer is a no-brainer, as he has experience as a reliever and, despite his success with the Dodgers, is the weakest of the six arms. Wrobleski, however, would be a frontline starter on most teams. Roberts confirmed that he would go to the bullpen “at some point in time," according to Dodger Blue.
Wrobleski has some experience out of the bullpen, but most of his success has been as a starter. This season, he has been a full-time starter and has a 3.44 ERA. However, he has struggled lately.
In his last three starts, he has a 9.88 ERA. It's not the biggest shock, considering he is nearing double the number of innings he threw last year. He is already 18 innings over his career high in innings pitched, set in High-A in 2023. Moving him could actually improve an ailing Dodgers bullpen.