The Dodgers will enter spring training with five solid starting pitchers and that doesn’t even take into account starters like Walker Buehler, Brock Stewart, and Ross Stripling. Walker Buehler will compete for a spot in the starting rotation and Ross Stripling has settled into the swingman role in the bullpen. The Dodgers and Brock Stewart could benefit by converting Stewart into a middle relief role.
In recent years the Dodgers have made it a habit of turning starting pitchers into middle relievers and finding success. Joe Blanton and Brandon Morrow are the latest examples of this, and the club signed Tom Koehler to once again try to turn him from an average starter to a plus reliever.