Dodgers’ 2025 Spring Training Preview: 3 vital areas to address ft. Setting up the new look rotation

The Los Angeles Dodgers won the World Series last year. They've since added a former Cy Young winner, the top Japanese pitcher, a star Korean infielder, two of the best relievers on the market, and more. They've only gotten better after being the best team in baseball.

With that said, Spring Training is going to be important for them. They have a lot of new pieces and a lot of moving parts to be wary of this spring, which is a perfect time to address the following needs.

---

What the Dodgers need to do in Spring Training

3) Find lineup depth

The Dodgers have to find depth at the end of their lineup (Imagn)

The Dodgers have a lineup that boasts an elite top four. Counting Will Smith, the top five of Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Teoscar Hernandez and Smith is exceptional. Beyond that, it's a little lacking. It was one of their problems last year, though it didn't matter much.

This isn't super imperative given how good the top five are, but they have to find enough offense in the back end out of Tommy Edman, Max Muncy, Chris Taylor and Hyesong Kim. Those names aren't as well-known as those at the top of the lineup, and they might look to the minor leagues or address voids early enough to fill them by trade.

---

2) Define bullpen roles

The Dodgers have to define their bullpen (Imagn)

Last year, the Dodgers' bullpen was a little bit amorphous. They had a lot of good relievers and they rode them to a championship when the rotation was in tatters. Now, they have even more good relievers, and they have to determine who is going to do what in the regular season.

The Dodgers didn't have a lockdown closer last year, but they added two in Kirby Yates and Tanner Scott. Those two, as well as Michael Kopech, could be the closer.

Others could play the setup roles. It's a good problem for the Dodgers to have given that it's a wealth of arms, but they have to figure out how best to set up the pen. Spring Training is a perfect time to do just that.

---

1) Set up their new rotation

The Dodgers have to set up their rotation (Imagn)

The Dodgers are about to have an almost entirely new rotation in 2025. Once Shohei Ohtani rejoins with injury, they'll have three pitchers who did not pitch for them in 2024: Blake Snell, Ohtani and Roki Sasaki. They also just have a lot of pitchers in general.

The Dodgers depth chart has an astonishing nine pitchers as starters. Sasaki, Ohtani, Snell, Tyler Glasnow, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tony Gonsolin, Dustin May, Emmet Sheehan and Landon Knack.

That doesn't include guys like Bobby Miller or Clayton Kershaw (who could re-sign). The Dodgers have to determine the order, which is easier said than done, and whether or not they want to use a six-man rotation.