Cody Snavely
Baseball has taken center stage with the official end to the NFL season, with the Kansas City Chiefs winning it all over the San Francisco 49ers.
With the Dodgers and Padres kicking off the 2024 season a week earlier than other teams due to the Korea Series, pitchers and catchers have already reported to camp with position players due to report this Wednesday.
The Dodgers’ historic offseason, bringing in many star players on both sides, has excited many Dodgers fans. However, the team has many glaring questions that must be addressed and a few storylines we can watch throughout the spring.
What are the plans for Buehler?
The 2023 Dodgers’ biggest struggle was their starting pitching depth. This was especially prevalent during the second half of the season and in October, as the starting pitching ERA during the NLDS was collectively 63.9.
However, in the regular season, the Dodgers also put up their highest collective ERA total in quite some time, posting a 4.07 ERA, which ranked 13th in the league.
A huge piece missing in that equation was Walker Buehler, who, before his second career, TJS, was lining up to be the team’s “ace” for the future. However, those plans were derailed as Buehler would miss most of 2022 and 2023.
Entering camp in 2024, the Dodgers are planning to slowly ramp up Buehler, with all signs indicating a delayed start to the regular season. The likelihood of Buehler making the Opening Day roster seems to be zero. But when he does make his season debut, what are we to expect?
In a recent article by the LA Times, Dylan Hernández asked Buehler various questions. One topic that stuck out to me was how Bueher explained he changed his diet and body to help his throwing arm handle the workload.
My elbow keeps, man, so I had to put a little weight around it and try and protect it a little bit
Walker Buehler via Dylan Hernández LA Times
Buehler, known for his slender frame and explosive delivery, has gone from weighing a slim 185 pounds to 205. However, the increase in weight is to be expected, as Buehler himself stated last season he was aiming to build more muscle in his recovery.
What type of innings limit?
Regarding the Dodgers’ plan for the right-handed pitcher, whether he will get work during games throughout spring training is unknown. Buehler did throw a bullpen and was sitting 92-94 MPH.
Dodgers GM Brandon Gomes stated that Buehler is not a candidate for the 60-day IL, which opened on February 8th. Gomes wouldn’t go into specific numbers, but Buehler is expected to be limited to 150-175 innings and 24-27 starts. In his last full regular season, he threw 207 ⅔ innings over 33 starts in 2021.
Pure speculation on my part would be that the team would hold off on Buheler making his debut in May.
Will Ohtani be ready for Opening Day?
Another topic that has circulated camp is Shohei Ohtani‘s health as he recovers from his second TJS surgery, which will sideline him on the mound for 2024.
At DodgerFest, Ohtani was asked numerous questions about his health and progress in rehabbing his throwing arm. To the excitement of many fans, Ohtani announced that he is progressing well and will take the following steps when the team breaks for camp in Arizona.
What are the next steps? Well, one area is hitting off high-velocity pitching, which Ohtani was seen doing by the dozens of media camping out at Camel Back Ranch in Arizona.
However, another question is, will Ohtani take at-bats in spring training? That question remains to be decided, but it is a safe bet that Ohtani will be limited. Ohtani has yet to begin throwing, as Brandon Gomes stated:
We haven’t totally sat down and mapped that out yet. We’re going to be focused on the hitting portion of it.
Brandon Gomes at DodgerFest 2024
What should encourage Dodgers fans is that it still sounds like Ohtani will be “full go” when the team heads to Korea to kick off the 2024 MLB season.
How will Lux bounce back?
One of the biggest storylines of the season will be the comeback story of Gavin Lux.
Lux, who missed the entire 2023 season due to a knee injury suffered as he rounded second base in a spring game last year, is expected to be fully ready when games start in less than two weeks.
The Dodgers surely missed Lux’s bat as Miguel Rojas, who was acquired to be a utility bench bat for the infield, had to become the team’s primary starting SS.
How the Dodgers handle Lux and his workload to start spring and the regular season will be watched. Lux has worked at Dodgers Stadium throughout the winter with Dodgers’ third base coach, Dino Ebel.
Lux, who appeared on SportsNet LA in late January, had this to say:
With the workouts and stuff, everything feels great. Taking ground balls, moving really well laterally, running bases; I think I’ve pretty much checked off every box at this point.
Gavin Lux via SportsNet LA
For the Dodgers to accomplish their ultimate goals for the season, Lux must take a step forward in his career and get another chance to be the team’s everyday SS.
Lux has shown the ability to get on base, and his speed will be valuable to the Dodgers’ lineup.
