Barring injury, the Dodgers will open the season with Javy Guerra as closer and Kenley Jansen as the primary setup man.
There is no closer controversy, at least not yet.
Jansen
last season, just his second full season after a pitcher after
converting from catcher, set a major league record by striking out 16.1
batters per nine innings. Jansen put up a 2.85 ERA and allowed just two
runs over his final 31 appearances of the season.
Guerra wasn't
as flashy, but did put up a 2.38 ERA with 38 strikeouts in 47 innings,
and he converted 21 of 23 save opportunities, earning him the closer
role heading into 2012.
Not that manager Don Mattingly didn't think about switching the roles of his two bullpen studs.
"It's
hard not to (think about it) with those two. But Javy took on that role
and didn't drop the ball all year," Mattingly said. "I don't know what
the right decision is, but this is a good problem to have. I like what
those two have said, that they are approaching this like if we get to
the eighth inning the game is over."
No matter their respective
roles, the Dodgers bullpen will likely need both Guerra and Jansen to be
effective if they are to contend in the National League West.
NOTES, QUOTES
Jansen sees doctor because of irregular heartbeat
--RHP Kenley Jansen experienced shortness of breath and a recurrence of an irregular heartbeat that sidelined him for a month in 2011, and was taken to see team internist Dr. James Monroe on March 9 in Arizona as a precaution. After Jansen was examined and Dr. Monroe consulted with a cardiologist, Jansen was cleared to resume all baseball activities, and returned to workouts the same day.
--RF Andre Ethier was out of the lineup Saturday because of a stiff back Saturday, a flare-up similar to the problem that took him out the first day of workouts. But he worked out normally Sunday, and manager Don Mattingly told reporters that Ethier wasn't restricted. Ethier came off the field the first day of workouts with a similar injury he told reporters was a result of him lifting boxes before camp opened.
--OF Andre Ethier, who spent his offseason recovering from arthroscopic surgery to his right knee, started off his spring on a hot streak, with five hits in his first eight Cactus League at-bats through his first four games, including a home run, a triple, and two doubles.
--RHP Aaron Harang experienced soreness in his right foot, but nothing major enough to keep him from missing any bullpen sessions or his start on March 7 against the A's in Phoenix. Harang said he experienced the soreness after switching to a new pair of orthotics shoes, but has since switched back.
--LHP Scott Rice, a non-roster invitee to Dodgers camp, won "Dodgers Idol," an annual karaoke competition among Dodgers in their first year in big league camp. Rice reportedly sang an original tune about Kenley Jansen, which won favor with judges RHP Todd Coffey, former manager Tommy Lasorda, and assistant trainer Nancy Patterson.
--DH Manny Ramirez, now on a minor league contract with Oakland, was scheduled to face the Dodgers on March 7 in Phoenix but the enigmatic slugger was a late scratch from the game with stiffness in his back.
BY THE NUMBERS: 7 -- The number of sons of former major leaguers currently in big league camp for the Dodgers. Four of them -- Scott Van Slyke (son of Andy), Ivan DeJesus Jr., Justin Sellers (son of Jeff), and Tony Gwynn Jr. -- combined to hit for the cycle in the sixth inning of the Dodgers' Cactus League opener on March 5. The other three sons of former major leaguers in Dodgers camp are Jerry Hairston Jr., Dee Gordon (son of Tom), and Matt Wallach (son of Dodgers third base coach Tim).
QUOTE TO NOTE: "I don't know what the right decision is, but this is a good problem to have." -- Manager Don Mattingly, on whether to use Javy Guerra or Kenley Jansen as his closer.
ROSTER REPORT
PROJECTED ROTATION:
1. LHP Clayton Kershaw
2. RHP Chad Billingsley
3. LHP Ted Lilly
4. LHP Chris Capuano
5. RHP Aaron Harang
It is hard not to like any rotation with a 24-year old reigning Cy Young Award winner at the top, and if healthy the starting five should prove to be effective over the course of the season.
The question is whether newcomers Capuano (from the New York Mets) and Harang (from the San Diego Padres), both homer-prone pitchers, can excel outside of home ballparks that suppressed the long ball.
PROJECTED BULLPEN:
RHP Javy Guerra (closer)
RHP Kenley Jansen
RHP Matt Guerrier
RHP Todd Coffey
RHP Mike MacDougal
LHP Scott Elbert
RHP Josh Lindblom
While the Dodgers have veterans Guerrier, Coffey, and MacDougal to help bolster the bullpen, the strength comes from homegrown players. Jansen was the unquestioned star in relief for the Dodgers in 2011, setting a major league record with 16.1 strikeouts per nine innings, a remarkable achievement given that Jansen was a catcher as recently as June 2009.
While Jansen seems like the logical long-term choice as closer, the job is Guerra's to lose until he falters. Guerra saved 21 games with a 2.31 ERA as a rookie in 2011, joining Elbert and Lindblom as pitchers who excelled in the Dodgers' bullpen after beginning 2011 in the minors.
Blake Hawksworth had arthroscopic surgery to remove scar tissue in his right elbow on Jan. 11, but developed an infection which required a second surgery. Because of that second surgery and the subsequent recovery period, the relief pitcher is two-to-three weeks behind schedule and will begin the season on the disabled list.
PROJECTED LINEUP:
1. SS Dee Gordon
2. 1B James Loney
3. CF Matt Kemp
4. RF Andre Ethier
5. LF Juan Rivera
6. 3B Juan Uribe
7. 2B Mark Ellis
8. C A.J. Ellis
The keys to the lineup will be whether or not Ethier can rebound from knee surgery that helped contribute to his career-low 11 home runs in 2011, and which Loney will show up.
Loney hit .320 with eight home runs and a .534 slugging percentage after the break, and the Dodgers hope that was real. Needed is sustainable improvement for Loney, who has averaged .281 with 12 home runs and a .411 slugging percentage over the last four years, well below average for an everyday first baseman.
Uribe looks to rebound from a miserable year in 2011, one that saw him hit .204 with four home runs in 77 games and spend two stints on the disabled list with a hip injury that ultimately required sports hernia surgery.
TOP ROOKIES: OF Alfredo Silverio had a breakout year at Class AA Chattanooga in 2011, hitting .306 with 42 doubles, 18 triples, and 16 home runs. OF/2B Alex Castellanos was acquired at the trade deadline last year from the St. Louis Cardinals for SS Rafael Furcal, and had a monster season at Class AA, hitting .320/.386/.573 with 35 doubles, 23 home runs, and 14 stolen bases. If Castellanos can stick at second base his value will rise. Both Silverio and Castellanos were added to the 40-man roster during the offseason.
MEDICAL WATCH:
--LHP Clayton Kershaw (mild back tightness) was scheduled to throw a bullpen session Feb. 24. He was on pace to make his Cactus League debut March 9.
--RHP Rubby De La Rosa (Tommy John surgery performed in August 2011) went on the 60-day disabled list Feb. 23. He will be sidelined until July or August.
