Inbox: Will Glasnow, Yamamoto be back?

This story was excerpted from Juan Toribio’s Dodgers Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

LOS ANGELES -- It’s hard to believe the regular season is coming to an end. In just three weeks, the Dodgers will be getting ready to attempt to win their first World Series since the 2020 pandemic-shortened season.

Though there’s still work to be done for the Dodgers -- like winning the National League West for the 11th time in 12 seasons and securing one of the top two seeds in the NL -- all eyes are already on what the team will look like when its postseason run continues the first week of October.

As well as the Dodgers are playing, there’s still a lot of uncertainty of how all the pieces will fit into the puzzle. With just a few weeks remaining, let’s answer a few questions sent in via X.

Can the Dodgers actually expect Glasnow and especially Yamamoto to perform in the postseason? They’ve missed too much time, I feel, to be expected to be useful. -- @BroadcastingMax

This is a good question and there are some important layers to it. Even with their extended time on the injured list, the Dodgers do expect Tyler Glasnow and Yoshinobu Yamamoto to be available for the postseason. Not only do they expect it, but they need both of their key offseason acquisitions to perform at their best.

Now, there are some legitimate questions as to how effective they’ll be. The best start of Yamamoto’s season came in his last one against the Yankees, dominating one of the best lineups in the Majors. However, he did that by utilizing his slider more than any other start. Though Yamamoto has shut the notion down, that pitch could’ve had some impact in his injury.

How much will Yamamoto throw the slider when he returns? That remains to be seen. He also needs to work his way back to form. Yamamoto was unimpressive in his two rehab starts with Triple-A Oklahoma City, but being back in a Major League game should help him. Yamamoto will have three or four starts to figure things out, and the Dodgers will desperately need him.

As for Glasnow, injuries just continue to be part of his career. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has made it clear that Glasnow will need at least one rehab start before he’s able to return. Glasnow will throw a bullpen session over the weekend, which will determine just how ready he is to take that step. When, or if, he returns to the mound this season, Los Angeles is going to need him to pitch like an ace to anchor its postseason rotation. Will Glasnow be able to do that if he’s not 100 percent? That’s going to be the big question.

In your mind, is there an NL playoff team that the Dodgers would prefer to match up with in a short series? -- @GpajerryMdm

I’ll preface this by saying there are no easy series in the postseason. The Dodgers have seen that in each of the past two postseasons, getting bounced in the National League Division Series by teams with an inferior regular-season record.

But for the Dodgers, getting a break from playing a division opponent could benefit them this time around. As things stand, the Padres and the D-backs are the fourth and fifth seeds, respectively. If the Dodgers wrestle the No. 1 seed from the Phillies, they will likely play a division opponent in the NLDS for the fifth consecutive postseason.

If the Dodgers fall to the No. 2 seed, they would likely get either the Brewers, Braves or Mets. I think any of those teams would be much better matchups for Los Angeles. But like I said, there is no real easy path when it comes to the postseason. It’s all about getting hot at the right time.

Any chance the Dodgers bring up Dalton Rushing for the final two to three weeks of the season? -- @jdsocal

It’s definitely possible. Since getting drafted in 2022, all Dalton Rushing (L.A.'s No. 1 prospect, No. 38 overall) has done is hit. Giving him a test run late in the regular season is something the Dodgers will consider. But right now, the focus is on securing the division.

If the playoffs started today, who would be the starting rotation? And who, of those not available right now, do they most want back? -- @DrBobCaldwell

Well, if the playoffs started right now, the Dodgers would be in big trouble given who they have on the injured list. Of the group that is sidelined, the biggest pieces are Yamamoto and Glasnow. After the starting pitching disaster last October, the Dodgers identified Yamamoto and Glasnow as their top two pitching targets this offseason with the postseason in mind.

With the pitching struggles of Walker Buehler and Bobby Miller, does that open the door for Landon Knack or Justin Wrobleski to make the postseason roster? -- @gaustin70

Even with guys struggling, it remains a long shot for either Knack or Wrobleski (L.A.'s No. 6 prospect) to make the postseason roster. One of the only ways either pitcher would make the roster is if the Dodgers don’t get Yamamoto, Glasnow and Clayton Kershaw back from injury, and they’re expected to get all three back.