With Game 1 of the Fall Classic set to begin tonight at 7:08 pm CT, the Dodgers officially revealed their World Series roster. While 23 of the 26 players from the NLCS roster are sticking around for the World Series, the team made three substitutions. Right-handed pitcher Brusdar Graterol, left-handed pitcher Alex Vesia, and infielder Miguel Rojas have been added to the roster, while right-handed pitchers Evan Phillips and Edgardo Henriquez and outfielder Kevin Kiermaier have been left off.
Rojas had an excellent regular season for the Dodgers, but he has been nursing a partially torn adductor muscle since late September. He played in the NLDS, going 2-for-8 across three games, but was left off the NLCS roster after re-aggravating his injury. Manager Dave Roberts told reporters yesterday that Rojas was likely to make the World Series roster. With Rojas back in action, Roberts will have more flexibility to use Tommy Edman, Chris Taylor, and Enrique Hernández in the outfield, therefore leaving Kiermaier as the odd man out. Kiermaier was not on the NLDS roster but joined the team in the NLCS in place of Rojas.
As for Graterol and Vesia, their inclusions on the roster come as a bit more of a pleasant surprise. Roberts was less certain about their status when he spoke to the media on Thursday, but clearly, the team has since decided they’re both ready to return.
Graterol has dealt with injuries almost all year and was unable to pitch in either the NLDS or NLCS. However, he was one of L.A.’s best relievers from 2022-23, and he has a career 1.64 ERA in 22 postseason games. If he is back at full strength, he should represent a huge upgrade to the Dodgers’ arm barn. The same is true of Vesia, who has quietly been one of the best relievers in baseball since joining the Dodgers. Over 227 appearances with the club, he has a 2.57 ERA – plus a 1.50 ERA in 15 postseason games. Vesia pitched in the NLDS against the Padres but suffered a minor intercostal injury during Game 5. His return will be especially important considering the Dodgers were down to just one left-handed pitcher on their entire pitching staff during the NLCS. He is sure to play a vital role against some of the dangerous lefties in the Yankees’ lineup.
Subbing out for Graterol and Vesia are Phillips and Henríquez. Phillips struggled at times in the second half, seemingly losing his job as the Dodgers’ primary closer in the process. Nonetheless, losing the right-hander is a big blow for L.A. Even in an up-and-down season, Phillips finished with a 3.62 and 3.15 SIERA over 61 games. He also made five scoreless appearances in this year’s playoffs; he has yet to allow a run in 15 1/3 career postseason innings. Unfortunately, it seems as if the arm fatigue he felt in Game 6 of the NLCS (per Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times) continues to be a problem. Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic also notes that Phillips has been pushing through “lat, biceps and triceps tightness” for about a month, so it is not hard to see why the Dodgers would exercise caution. It’s also worth noting, as POBO Andrew Friedman told reporters, that the Dodgers would not have been able to remove Phillips from the roster mid-series if his injury worsened, because it was a pre-existing condition (per Harris).
As for Henriquez, the hard-throwing rookie was lucky enough to make the NLDS and NLCS rosters after pitching just 3 1/3 innings in the regular season. He gave up four earned runs on eight hits over five innings of work in his first taste of October baseball. It’s hardly surprising to see him bumped off the roster now that Graterol and Vesia are available once again.
The full roster:
- Right-handed pitchers: Ryan Brasier, Walker Buehler, Ben Casparius, Jack Flaherty, Brusdar Graterol, Brent Honeywell Jr., Daniel Hudson, Landon Knack, Michael Kopech, Blake Treinen, Yoshinobu Yamamoto
- Left-handed pitchers: Anthony Banda, Alex Vesia
- Catchers: Austin Barnes, Will Smith
- Infielders: Freddie Freeman, Gavin Lux, Max Muncy, Miguel Rojas
- Outfielders: Teoscar Hernández, Andy Pages
- Infielders/Outfielders: Mookie Betts, Tommy Edman, Chris Taylor, Enrique Hernández
- Designated hitter: Shohei Ohtani
Kiermaier career ends watching his team play for the World Series while he sits in the stands. Wowzers
His body has a lot of miles on it from all those years of playing defense full tilt.
Spent nearly all his career on turf. Mostly on that awful Rays turf. Gotta figure he’d have at least a few more miles to go if he’d spent most of his career on grass.
Really solid career, if this is the end for him.
He’ll be in the dugout since he’s still part of the 40 man. All it will take is one little tweak to Rojas and he’ll be back on the active roster just in time to make a game saving catch.
No matter where Kiermaier sits, he’ll still get a ring if the Dodgers win.
That other people won for him. I’d never want that handout and I’d put it on eBay
Pages started hitting really well once the trade deadline brought in some competition. He earned his spot. Taylor…well, defensive versatility is worth something.
Evan Phillips’s injury is a big blow.
It is. Vesia and Graterol are huge additions though.
His being left off the roster isn’t being reported as an injury, more like a tired arm. Presumably he will be the first added back to the roster if anyone else drops off. Which, considering who is being added back, seems like something close to a certainty.
Yikes…I know you want to have the best guys out there, but the personal side is that he meant so much to that pen almost the entire season.
What are the rules in WS for replacing players on the 26?
It can be done, but you need permission from the Commissioner’s Office. And pitchers can only be replaced by another pitcher; position players must be replaced by another position player.
ty
I’m tempted to question whether the Dodgers are using a phantom injury to squeeze an extra pitcher into action, then adding Phillips to the roster later in the series BUT…. if they were going to do that, they’d probably pick anyone OTHER than Phillips. In 15.1 innings of work, Phillips has a career postseason ERA of 0.00.
in classic Dodger fashion he’ll be back in 26 after TJ surgery. always worse than they say.
I did not know that thing about not being able drop a player for a pre-existing condition. That seems like an easy thing to cheat, I’m surprised the Dodgers are owning up to it. 😀
I’m happy to see Edman living his dream in the playoffs and World Series. I always really liked him as a player.
It may be against the rules, but being a Reds fan, I even enjoyed Edman’s play. I wish him good luck.
And he’s having a great post season.
my cousin is a huge StL fan and she told me as soon as the trade was made i’d love the guy. she wasn’t lying!
Phillips has got to be hurt. Keeping Brasier on the roster at the expense of Phillips is an absurdity.
Seems that way. He was reportedly tasked with throwing two innings in Game 6 of the NLCS but was pulled after one. Sounds like he’s nursing an injury of some kind. But either way, Brasier isn’t the one who would’ve been left off. Likely Knack.
Respectfully disagree VM. In a 7 game series, there are going to be blowouts and you need multi inning relief pitchers. Particularly so, when the starting pitching is thin. Both Knack and Casparius Good very well have 3-4 inning appearances in this series.
Braiser is a key part of the bullpen games and a higher leverage arm. You don’t need 3 bulk guys (Knack, Casparius, Honeywell). They would absolutely take Braiser over Knack.
Truth.
May the best team win! Enjoy fellas!
You too, Yank!
Graterol has pitched (checks notes) 7.1 innings over seven games this year and has not appeared in a game in 31 days. #worrisome
He looked great, yin to Nestor Cortes’s yang
Good luck to both teams! It’s the battle of the big heavyweights!
Bit of a gamble there with Rojas. If he gets hurt again, the Dodgers will need to scramble a bit.
They beat the Mets without him and there are a ton of guys who can play CF. Losing Kiermeier hardly affects the depth.
Having a medical staff does not impact salary cap. Something is seriously wrong in LA.
Amazing that Honeywell can make the Dodgers bullpen but can’t stick with the awful Pirates bullpen.
What does that tell you about Cherington and Shelton?
Dodgers have some competent baseball people besides lots of money.
Money can buy a lot of competent people.
I wouldn’t make quite so much of it. Honeywell is still a journeyman. With the starting pitching shortage the Dodgers need at least one middle-inning long reliever.
I agree he is just a journeyman but he is better than guys they kept on the roster.
I can’t speak to the roster needs of the Pirates. I know only that he fills a role on the Dodgers sort of adequately. I still grit my teeth when he takes the mound if the game is at all close. He’s there to eat some innings but he’s probably going to wobble through it.