The Los Angeles Dodgers have an unsettled rotation for Opening Day, especially with injuries coming down and players leaving for the World Baseball Classic.
The Dodgers’ rotation, as of early March, will feature Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, Roki Sasaki, and Shohei Ohtani, assuming everyone stays healthy.
Yamamoto and Ohtani are the bigger question marks since they will be playing in intense baseball games, and their competitive nature opens the door to a big one.
Snell will not be ready for Opening Day, according to Roberts, and Gavin Stone has stopped throwing the ball, ruling him out for the first part of the season.
This leaves at least one spot open if they go with a five-man rotation, but the more likely outcome is a six-man rotation, which would leave two slots open.
There are three players gunning for a rotation spot — Justin Wrobleski, River Ryan, and Emmet Sheehan. Here is a case for each one of them.
Emmet Sheehan
The righty was hyper-reliable in the 2025 regular season after coming back from injury. He pitched 15 games and a total of 73.1 innings with a 2.82 ERA.
He had 89 strikeouts and 22 walks, a good ratio, and a well-developed arsenal, giving him options.
His success did not translate to the postseason, however, as he had an 8.59 ERA in 7.1 innings.
Sheehan did not start Spring Training on a good foot, missing time and preparation with an illness, and he looked rough in his first relief appearance on Wednesday.
He pitched 1.1 innings in the outing and allowed one earned run, leaving the game with the bases loaded in the fifth inning.
Considering he is only 26, there is still plenty of upside in Sheehan, and people around baseball expect him to break out, though he will need to prove that he is ready during the spring or risk missing out on another deserving candidate.
Justin Wrobleski
After a rough season serving in long-relief situations, Wrobleski bounced back with a lights-out postseason, giving up no runs in five innings of work, most notably against the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 7 of the World Series.
His postseason has earned him another look as a starter, according to Dave Roberts, despite a -0.1 bWAR in 66.2 innings sample during the 2025 regular season.
He got off to a strong start in Spring Training, pitching 3.0 innings with two outs, with just one hit given up and no runs.
While many wrote him off as a replacement-level arm, Wrobleski is proving his doubters wrong, and at nearly 26 years of age, the lefty offers something unique as a southpaw in a group full of right-handed hitters.
Even if he does not make the Opening Day rotation, he should deliver plenty of innings for Dave Roberts and company.
River Ryan
Ryan, who missed more than a year on the baseball field, is the Dodgers’ top pitching prospect, and at 27, the time is now for him to make a big-league impact.
In 2024, Ryan pitched 20.1 innings, with a 1.33 ERA, looking quite promising before he suffered an elbow injury that required Tommy John surgery.
Witha good pitch mix and his fastball looking lively, Ryan is well-positioned to earn serious consideration, especially after his start to the spring.
He has thrown three innings without coughing up a run, and the fastball looks good, along with a change-up that is making his stuff seem dangerous.
