Steve Webb
LOS ANGELES, CA — Don’t get me wrong. I think Blake Treinen has been fantastic this year. He, along with Alex Vesia, have been the most consistent and dominant bullpen arms that the Dodgers have thrown out there. But, after giving up the go-ahead run in Game One, and the adventure of Game Two, don’t we have to ask ourselves, “Is Treinen REALLY the guy we want in there in the ninth inning?”
Let me explain. During the regular season Treinen was definitely NOT the Dodgers’ closer. For most of the year, that was Evan Phillips, and then Michael Kopech sort of assumed that role after the trade deadline, but by and large it was closer-by-committee for the Dodgers this season. Fully FOURTEEN guys got saves for the team in 2024, a new franchise record. And where did Blake Treinen sit on that list? Tied for sixth place with just one save. In fact, the dude had only four save opportunities the entire season.
Let’s dig a little bit deeper. Treinen’s ERA in the ninth inning is, to put it gently, abysmal. During the regular season, Treinen was fantastic, posting a 1.93 ERA over the course of the year. But in the final frame of the ballgame, it’s a very different story. In the ninth, Treinen’s ERA balloons to 11.25. Not great, Bob. Compare that to his ERA in the seventh (0.00) and the eighth (0.44). And now, in the postseason, he’s given up a run in three straight outings. The last run of the NLCS hardly counts as it was a pair of singles and a stolen base on defensive indifference. But the two appearances in the World Series looked very un-Treinen like. His WHIP is an unacceptable 2.50. That’s way too much traffic for a guy who struggles to hold runners on base.
This kind of thing happens a lot in the postseason. A guy who is fantastic in one role (set-up man in the case of Treinen) is thrust into a higher leverage situation and is not able to perform as well. If I had Dave Roberts‘ and Mark Prior‘s ear, I would tell them to seriously consider removing Treinen from closing out games and give the role to Michael Kopech, who’s very comfortable bringing the heat in the ninth. During the regular season, Kopech was a perfect 6-for-6 in save opportunities with his new club, and his postseason ERA is better than Treinen’s is (1.29 to 2.72).
So some of this might have to do with Kopech getting an easier section of the batting order to deal with when Treinen’s having to contend with the best hitters of the opponents. And, truth be told, it’s not like Treinen’s giving up a lot of hard contact. But there was enough in the ninth inning last night that made me wonder whether or not the assets of Treinen and Kopech are being deployed to maximum impact.
Something to think about as the team heads into the Bronx, hopefully to return with a World Series title. Blake Treinen is an amazing pitcher with video game stuff. Maybe at this point in his career, he’s just not a closer.
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