Dodgers Dugout: Help wanted: Starting pitcher, preferably can last six innings

The Dodgers are holding their starting rotation together with spit and bailing wire, as they turn to two untested rookies to face the Braves. ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ [Los Angeles Times] Dodgers Dugout May 22, 2023 [View in browser]( [Click to view images]( Urías is on the injured list because of a strained left hamstring. (Jeff Roberson / Associated Press) Hi, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers Dugout. My name is Houston Mitchell. The Dodgers got knocked around by the surging St. Louis Cardinals, and now move on to play Atlanta (best record in NL) and Tampa Bay (best record in baseball). If you have a strong throwing arm and think you can last for five innings or so, you might want to give the Dodgers a call. Julio Urías, after getting rocked in his last start, is the latest to head to the injured list. Let’s take a look at the starting rotation: Clayton Kershaw, 6-4, 2.98 ERA (4.87 ERA in last four starts) Tony Gonsolin, 2-1, 1.13 ERA (Averaging 4 2/3 innings per start) Noah Syndergaard, 1-3, 5.88 ERA (more like sore than Thor) Julio Urías, 5-4, 4.39 ERA (on injured list with strained left hamstring) Dustin May, 4-1, 2.63 ERA (out for six weeks with elbow injury) Michael Grove, 0-1, 8.44 ERA (on injured list) Ryan Pepiot (on injured list all season) Walker Buehler (out until at least September after Tommy John surgery) Gavin Stone, 0-0, 9.00 ERA, only one start. Will start today against Atlanta Bobby Miller, Dodgers’ No. 2 prospect, will make first career MLB start Tuesday against Atlanta Enjoying this newsletter? Your support helps us deliver the news that matters most. [Become a Los Angeles Times subscriber.]( Wow. That’s not the greatest list in the history of baseball. Currently, the rotation is Kershaw, Gonsolin, who can’t pitch past the fifth inning, Syndergaard, who has an ERA of 6.98 in his last five starts and is so bad at holding runners a toddler could steal off him, and two unproven rookies (who, on the positive side, are two of their best prospects). They also have three main starters and two rookies on the IL. Kershaw has had two ineffective starts in a row now. After Sunday’s loss, when Kershaw gave up four runs in 3 2/3 innings, manager Dave Roberts said Kershaw had mentioned feeling general “body fatigue” after his previous start. “[Sunday’s start] showed a lot of similarities to that last one, as far as fatigue,” Roberts said. “I know health-wise, he’s fine. But the fact of the matter is that the ball just wasn’t coming out like we’re used to, these last two.” The last two starts came after the death of Kershaw’s mom. He is going on the bereavement list and will attend her memorial service Tuesday in Texas. You have to imagine that would contribute to some “body fatigue,” so let’s cut Kershaw a little slack, shall we? The lack of quality starting pitching the last few games is also wearing out the bullpen, which had an ERA of 10.47 in the series against St. Louis, including four shutout innings in a 5-0 win over the Cardinals on Friday. Yency Almonte, who was great last season, has the second-worst ERA (8.53) of any reliever with at least 15 innings pitched this season. Only Adam Oller of Oakland at 10.07 is worse. The Dodgers bullpen ERA (4.70) is 27th among the 30 major league teams. The relievers are also seventh in innings pitched. So what’s the solution? Mainly, it’s to hope that Stone and Miller can pitch well enough to give the Dodgers some rotation length and give the overworked bullpen a rest. These next six games, against two of the best teams in baseball, are crucial. They have an off day on Thursday, which will help. But two untested rookies against the Braves the next two days is a recipe for a lot of bullpen innings. If Stone and Miller really are two of the Dodgers’ five best propsects, now would be a good time to show it. ADVERTISEMENT Some interesting stat notes —James Outman, who is deservedly the Rookie of the Year favorite right now, is on pace to strike out 199 times. The record is 223 by Mark Reynolds in 2009. —Max Muncy is on pace for 50 home runs ... and 100 hits. No one in the history of baseball has hit at least 30 homers, with those homers accounting for at least half of his hits. —Will Smith has an on-base percentage of .414. The only Dodgers catchers to finish a season (minimum 350 at-bats) with an OB% of .400 or better was Mike Piazza (three times) and Mike Scioscia. By the way, unless an epic slump happens, if Smith doesn’t make the All-Star team this season, there should be an investigation. —How the Dodgers are doing at each batting order position this season in batting average (NL rank)/OB% (NL rank)/Slugging % (NL ranks) Leadoff: .246 (11th)/ .353 (6th)/.513 (2nd) No. 2 spot: .321 (1st)/ .395 (1st)/.547 (2nd) No. 3: .274 (5th)/ .360 (7th)/ .559 (1st) Cleanup: .211 (last)/ .337 (6th)/ .497 (3rd) Batting fifth: .228 (10th)/ .323 (7th)/ .421 (9th) Sixth: .217 (11th)/.285 (13th)/ .383 (11th) Seventh: .241 (7th)/ .340 (4th)/ .488 (1st) Eighth: .181 (14th)/ .255 (14th)/ .361 (9th) Ninth: .156 (14th)/ .247 (13th)/ .231 (last) Nos. 1-2: .284 (4th)/ .374 (2nd)/.532 (2nd) Nos. 3-6: .233 (last)/ .327 (8th)/ .466 (3rd) Nos. 7-9: .193 (14th)/.282 (12th)/.361 (8th) —And finally, a look at the OPS+ for the Dodgers on the current roster. OPS+ combines a batter’s on-base and slugging percentage, makes an adjustment for the home park, and compares it to the league average. A league average hitter will have an OPS+ of 100. A batter with an OPS+ of 120 is 20% better than average. One with an OPS+ of 80 is 20% worse than average. Will Smith, 160 Freddie Freeman, 153 Max Muncy, 141 James Outman, 134 Mookie Betts, 132 J.D. Martinez, 113 Miguel Vargas, 108 Jason Heyward, 100 Chris Taylor, 82 David Peralta, 56 Trayce Thompson, 56 Miguel Rojas, 29 Austin Barnes, -15 Thompson is 0 for his last 36. The record hitless streak is 0 for 54 by Chris Davis in 2018-19. Barring something huge happening in the Atlanta series, next time we will look at the Dodgers’ top 10 prospects. Why isn’t Justin Turner with the Dodgers? Don’t ask him, he doesn’t know. Colleague Jorge Castillo caught up with Turner recently in Boston and asked him what happened: “I have no idea,” Turner said. “No idea. That’s not a question for me to answer because other than being extremely happy with where I am and loving all these guys and being a part of it, like, the honest truth is I did not see myself ever playing for another organization for the rest of my career. And that’s just the truth. “I never pictured myself wearing another uniform. And when my option was declined, I made that clear to multiple people. …There [were] multiple people that I told, ‘Hey, I want to come back. I want to get this done as fast as possible. Let’s not beat around the bush. Let’s not drag this thing out. This is where I want to be.’ “So, from my perspective, I wasn’t playing any games or trying to leverage anything. I made it clear what I wanted. So I don’t know what happened, but it happened.” Read Castillo’s story, filled with other interesting details, [by clicking here](. These names look familiar How members of the 2022 Dodgers who are now with other teams are doing this season (through Saturday). Tap on the name of the player to be taken to their full stats. Batters [Hanser Alberto]( White Sox: .222/.269/.403, 4 doubles, 3 homers, 82 OPS+ [Eddy Alvarez]( Brewers: in the minors [Cody Bellinger]( Cubs: .271/.337/.493, 9 doubles, 1 triple, 7 homers, 126 OPS+, on the 15-day IL because of a knee injury [Joey Gallo]( Twins: .215/.323/.589, 5 doubles, 1 triple, 11 homers, 146 OPS+ [Jake Lamb]( Angels: .216/.259/.353, 1 double, 2 homers, 66 OPS+, in the minors [Zach McKinstry]( Tigers: .271/.360/.417, 5 doubles, 3 homers, 118 OPS+ [Kevin Pillar]( Braves: .263/.296/.500, 3 doubles, 5 homers, 111 OPS+ [Edwin Ríos]( Cubs: .095/.269/.286, 1 double, 1 homer, 54 OPS+ [Justin Turner]( Red Sox: .279/.370/.424, 9 doubles, 5 homers, 115 OPS+ [Trea Turner]( Phillies: .257/.302/.390, 9 doubles, 2 triples, 4 homers, 90 OPS+ [Tony Wolters]( Twins: in the minors Pitchers [Tyler Anderson]( Angels: 1-0, 5.27 ERA, 42.2 IP, 48 hits, 21 walks, 27 K’s [Garrett Cleavinger]( Rays: on the 60-day IL [Shane Greene]( free agent [Andrew Heaney]( Rangers: 2-3, 4.71 ERA, 42 IP, 32 hits, 18 walks, 47 K’s [Heath Hembree]( Tigers: in the minors [Tommy Kahnle]( Yankees: on the 60-day IL [Craig Kimbrel]( Phillies: 2-1, 6.19 ERA, 16 IP, 13 hits, 9 walks, 27 K’s, 4 saves [Chris Martin]( Red Sox: 0-1, 1.38 ERA, 13 IP, 11 hits, 2 walks, 9 K’s [Reyes Moronta]( Angels: 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.2 IP, 2 hits, 1 walks, 2 K’s [David Price]( retired [Mitch White]( Blue Jays: on the 15-day IL ADVERTISEMENT What Vin Scully meant to me Last season, after Vin Scully died, I asked readers to send in what he meant to them. I ran them the rest of the season and wanted to circle back and run the rest, which will take a few weeks at least. If you wish to contribute (if you sent it to me last season, I still have it, so no need to send again), please email it to houston.mitchell@latimes.com and put Vin Scully in the subject line. From Stuart Tolchin: In September 1965 I began my first year of law school. This was a major impediment to my major interest, which was viewing/listening to Dodger games called by Vin Scully. I was particularly interested in the exploits of Sandy Koufax, a Jewish boy just like me. Law school had begun together with my 20 hours per week as a liquor store clerk. I worked four hours each Tuesday and Thursday night, and 12 hours on Saturday. One of the first Thursday nights I worked was Sept. 9, 1965. The Dodgers were playing the Cubs, Koufax was pitching and I was lucky to have a portable radio to hear Vin call the perfect game by Koufax. Vin’s call of the game was magical, it allowed me to forget myself and realize how fortunate I was to be alive and be able to listen to the whole game. I remember Vin’s final call as the count went to 2 and 2 and Vin announced, “Swung on and missed, a perfect game!” Hooray for Sandy! Hooray for Vin! I was the fortunate one being able to hear the game almost uninterrupted (there were very few customers) while almost every other law student I later talked to had wasted their time studying. From Vince Piscitelli of Martinez, Calif.: My first memory of the Dodgers was from my mom, who moved from Brooklyn to Northern California in 1958. I was born a year later. I remember her rooting for the Dodgers and celebrating one year by making a huge sign congratulating the Dodgers, which she hung outside our house, probably to tease all our neighbors who were Giants fans. I’m guessing this was in 1963 or 1965. Very soon afterward I became infatuated with the Dodgers, mostly because of my mom and especially after she bought me a blue transistor radio from K-Mart so I could listen to their games. Although their games started at 8 p.m. back then, living in Northern California I could only receive reception around 9 p.m. or later, which of course meant I was twisting and turning my radio in bed, begging the reception gods for help, all the while I was supposed to be sleeping. I still had little knowledge of who Vin Scully was at the time. My parents had some issues and there was a lot of loud noise in our house, but interestingly enough I somehow could block it all out and fall asleep peacefully while listening to Dodger games from my blue transistor radio. To this day, I thank my beloved mom for her love of the Dodgers and for that precious radio. Finally, I realized that it was those “soothing voices” coming from my blue transistor radio that enabled me to cope with all the loud noises in our house — putting me gently to sleep. Thanks Vin! Book giveaway winners The free book giveaway drawing is over. A random number generator was used to select 10 winners: Catlan Brinsley Kay Gage Jose Hernandez Kevin Ingraham Chad Kocher Mary McNaught Mark Okura Tony Palermo Rick Roswell Trina Valencia You all should have received an email from me late Sunday night with instructions on what to do next. Got almost 4,000 entries. Thanks so much everyone! I am working on getting a code so those who didn’t win can buy a copy at a discounted rate. Stay tuned, it should be in the next newsletter. Up next Monday: Dodgers (Gavin Stone, 0-0, 9.00 ERA) at Atlanta (Charlie Morton, 5-3, 2.85 ERA), 4:20 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020 Tuesday: Dodgers (Bobby Miller, first start) at Atlanta (Spencer Strider, 4-1, 2.96 ERA), 4:20 p.m., SportsNet LA, TBS, AM 570, KTNQ 1020 Wednesday: Dodgers (Tony Gonsolin, 2-1, 1.13 ERA) at Atlanta (Bryce Elder, 3-0, 2.06 ERA), 4:20 p.m., SportsNet LA, AM 570, KTNQ 1020 In case you missed it [Top Dodgers pitching prospects Gavin Stone, Bobby Miller to start against Braves]( [Another Dodgers pitcher injury: Julio Urías lands on IL with hamstring strain]( [The Dodgers booted the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. Then came a big-league backlash]( [Hernández: Pride Night fiasco shows Dodgers no longer have backbone to be social trailblazers]( [Column: Dodgers shouldn’t side with homophobic Catholics — invite the drag nuns]( [Justin Turner ‘extremely happy’ with Red Sox, but has ‘no idea’ why he’s not a Dodger]( [Dodgers unsure if Julio Urías was tipping pitches in blowout loss to Cardinals]( [One knocked unconscious in fan brawl outside Dodger Stadium]( And finally Tommy Lasorda gets very animated arguing about Reggie Jackson‘s interference in the World Series. Warning: Strong language. [Watch and listen here](. Until next time... Have a comment or something you’d like to see in a future Dodgers newsletter? Email me at houston.mitchell@latimes.com, and follow me on Twitter at [@latimeshouston](. To get this newsletter in your inbox, [click here](. ADVERTISEMENT Thank you for reading the Los Angeles Times Dodgers Dugout newsletter. Invite your friends, relatives, coworkers to sign up [here](. 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