The Dodgers are making starting pitchers the main characters of the MLB playoffs again

Los Angeles Dodgers — sorry, defending World Series champion Dodgers — leads 2-0 in best-of-seven NLCS matchup vs. Milwaukee Brewerswho had the best regular season record in baseball. They are 7-1 in the playoffs this season, including 4-0 on the road against teams that finished the regular season with the best record.

How are the Dodgers handling this? Look no further than the NLCS Game 2 hero. It may have needed a little adjustment over the past few years, but the Dodgers are once again putting their focus on starting pitcher. In Game 2, the Dodgers' starter completed the game. It was Yoshinobu Yamamoto played for the Dodgers in their first full MLB playoff game since 2017. In the first game against the Brewers it was Blake Snell shined eight innings.

The 2025 Dodgers are bringing back their marquee starting pitcher.

In sports, game planning can be cyclical. Often the teams that achieve the most success are those that are ahead of the proverbial curve. The Dodgers have been one of the teams at the forefront of change for years, and it looks like it's happening again.

Last year we saw them win the World Series with Yamamoto, Jack Flaherty, Walker Buehler and bullpen play. They typically didn't go deep with their starters or put things together with a group of substitutes while relying on a good offense.

This time, the Dodgers have made their bullpen meaningless, turning their rotation into a stable of workhorses.

On my way to NLDS, I indicated that The Dodgers were going to do this to protect against a leaking bullpen.. Their starters pitched well, even more than I expected. All this time they deter opposing offenses. That is, they don't just pick up pitches. They do this by being dominant.

Snell, notorious for failing to get deep into games in his career due to erratic control and high pitch counts, pitched 21 innings in three starts with a 0.86 ERA. He set a new career high in innings to start the playoffs in two of his three games. The eight innings he threw in Game 1 were the second-most of his career, including the regular season.

Yamamoto has now pitched 19⅔ innings over three starts after pitching his first complete game in the playoffs since then. Justin Verlander did it in 2017 (also: Kudos to my colleague Mike Axis for correctly predicting that we'll see the full game.). It was the Dodgers' first complete playoff game since 2004 (Jose Lima). How about this, huh? A full playoff game!

Shohei Ohtani had pitched six innings in his only playoff start to that point, and he averaged only 3 ⅓ innings per start in the regular season while recovering from elbow surgery. Tyler Glasnow his only start to date also went six innings.

That's eight playoff games for the Dodgers, averaging 6⅔ innings per start. Have you looked around the rest of the teams for an assortment of starters, bullpen games and shorter starts? The Brewers aren't even averaging three innings per start. Sailors have a rotation of starters and have not used an opening game or bullpen game, but they average less than five innings per start. Tigers have Tyan Skubalabut averaged less than five innings per start in eight games. Phyllis also had a full rotation and averaged exactly five innings per start.

As a good guide you can Major League Baseball The regular season average was 5.2 innings per start, or less than 5 ⅓ innings. The Phillies led the tournament with 5 ⅔ innings per start. The Dodgers are eclipsing that mark in the playoffs, and the average is only rising.

Putting aside the polarizing Dodgers who did it, fellow fans of the starting pitcher as the main character should be thrilled to see this. I noted above that teams that are ahead of their time can achieve success. Just as often, other teams notice what is happening and try to repeat this success.

Of course, it helps to have deep pockets and ridiculous talent. The Dodgers struggled with injuries in their rotation for most of the season, but things turned out well for the playoffs, to the point where the starters like Clayton Kershaw, Rocky Sasaki And Emmet Sheehan were transferred to the bullpen. Glasnow also felt relieved.

There are plenty of teams where anyone from the group of Snell, Yamamoto and Glasnow could be the No. 1 starter, and Ohtani also shoots like a frontcourt player. It's an embarrassment of riches that, yes, most other teams can't afford.

Still, they have to go out and perform, and the Dodgers' stable of studs gets the job done like no team we've seen in a century.

This foursome has a 1.54 ERA in the playoffs, and again, that's with a heavy workload. If we sort through at least seven games, this would be the lowest postseason ERA in the last 100 years. They struck out 63 against just 13 walks in 52⅔ innings.

While Reds they didn't have a very good offense, the Phillies (8th in MLB in runs allowed) and the Brewers (3rd) were the two best offenses in baseball this season. The Dodgers' starters held the Brewers to one run over 17 innings in two NLCS games. The Phillies did get them for some runs, but they still posted a 1.92 ERA and got six scoreless innings from both Snell and Glasnow.

If the Dodgers are going to become the first repeat champions since the 1998-2000 season. Yankeesthis will happen thanks to their rotation and the resurrection of a creature that looked like it was dying a slow death the last few postseasons.

Welcome back, the main character, the starting pitcher. They let you through.