GLENDALE, Ariz. — The Dodgers don’t plan to wait long to show off their shiny new starting pitchers.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts confirmed Tuesday that the team hopes to have Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow start the two regular-season games in South Korea against the San Diego Padres on March 20-21.
“I think that’s a safe bet,” Roberts said. “Obviously things can change. It’s two regular-season games. But it’s just two games. I think it’s fair to say that’s our hope. But I don’t think I am or we are beholden to that if it doesn’t make sense.
“This is a unique ramp up for everyone. Like I said, it’s two games that matter but it’s just two games. So the entirety of the season and making sure these guys are ready to take down the starts, that’s most important.”
Both Glasnow and Yamamoto have thrown live batting practice already, dominating the Dodgers’ hitters. Roberts indicated they will throw to hitters at least once more before pitching in Cactus League games.
The compressed spring training calendar necessitated by the early start in Seoul “doesn’t leave much margin for error” in getting players ready, General Manager Brandon Gomes acknowledged.
“You build out the progression with our hitting guys, getting position players up and ready to go. From a pitching side it’s even more challenging,” Gomes said. “So it creates a narrow band of, if you have a hiccup, can you recover from it as far as making sure you’re not putting guys in harm’s way? But we’re prepared for a bunch of different things to happen. And it’s part of the benefit of having the depth that we have. So you have the plan, and if you have to pivot, you pivot.
“But I think that’s the biggest challenge. You don’t have the, ‘Oh, we can take an extra couple days and it doesn’t really matter.’”
With just a month left before the series in Korea, Yamamoto and Glasnow – or whoever winds up starting there – are not…
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