Los Angeles Dodgers: Julio Urias vs. Scott Kazmir vs. Brandon McCarthy vs. Hyun-Jin Ryu
Four guys fighting for two spots. The pitchers to really watch here are Urias and Ryu.
Urias is the most fascinating guy in this mix. He’s only 20 and has the most raw potential of the quartet. But the Dodgers have been incredibly cautious with Urias since he joined the organization in 2013. Between AAA and the majors in 2016, he threw only 122 innings. But even that was his highest total as a pro by a fairly significant margin.
If he clearly outshines the other three, Los Angeles will almost be obligated to make him one of the starters. Still, being so cautious with a starting pitcher is always a chore, especially given that the Dodgers are one of baseball’s best teams.
Ryu was an integral part of Los Angeles’ success in 2013 and 2014, but things changed a lot from there. He missed all of 2015 with an injury, appeared only once in an ineffective outing last year only to be sidelined again with an injury.
Which Ryu will show up in spring training? Will he give the Dodgers enough confidence to put him back in the rotation?
Even with the questions, a rotation that includes both Urias and Ryu is a good thing for Los Angeles. The starting rotation of Clayton Kershaw, Kenta Maeda, Rich Hill, Urias and Ryu would be quite formidable.
Kazmir and McCarthy are really the safe plays.
Both are established veterans, and at this point, it’s hard to imagine either with a high ceiling. The top-three would still give the Dodgers a strong starting staff, but Los Angeles would be a little more beatable if its starting rotation couldn’t include Urias and Ryu.