Who closes games for the Dodgers now?
· Yahoo Sports
Edwin Díaz won’t be closing games for the Dodgers for the foreseeable future, as he’ll be sidelined until the second half of the season. The Dodgers don’t seem all that interested in anointing another pitcher into the capital-c Closer role in the interim, which is to be expected given how they generally operate.
This is what manager Dave Roberts said on Monday afternoon at Coors Field ahead of the series finale against the Colorado Rockies. From Bill Plunkett at the Orange County Register:
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“I do feel comfortable with a handful of guys, really, that I feel that can close out games for us,” Roberts said. “So right now, I’m not gonna name a closer.”
The Dodgers have been hesitant to name a closer pretty much since Kenley Jansen left the organization. Even as Evan Phillips was the clear usual choice as closer when healthy in 2023 and 2024, they didn’t name him as closer. But even if anointed, the title can always be temporary. Roberts did not hesitate to remove Jansen from closing duties in his later years with the club, especially in the postseason.
Generally speaking, the Dodgers don’t like to paint themselves into a corner. Naming a closer doesn’t really accomplish much other than ego boosting. It took someone with Díaz’s stature and accomplishments to stray from that path.
Alex Vesia has earned the two saves not recorded by Díaz on the Dodgers this year. Given how they’ve been used and their career track records, expect Tanner Scott and Blake Treinen to get closing opportunities as well. Those three were mentioned by name by Roberts on Monday, and they’ve pitched in the highest-leverage situations this season on the staff among active pitchers.
A dozen different Dodgers recorded saves last year, and a whopping 14 pitchers did so in 2024 (15, counting Walker Buehler’s championship-clincher). Today’s question is a simple one: which Dodgers pitcher(s) would you like to see close games with Edwin Díaz on the shelf?