LOS ANGELES, CA — The Dodgers have five days to get ready for the National League Division Series, and general manager Brandon Gomes says the club has a clear plan for using them.
Speaking with reporters Tuesday, Gomes pointed often to the Dodgers’ 2024 postseason run as a useful guide. That means balancing rest with high-intensity work, keeping hitters ready for playoff velocity and making sure the players continue to spend time together. He also touched on several roster questions, Shohei Ohtani’s health and the growing number of pitching options the Dodgers have heading into October.
Using 2024 as the Blueprint
Gomes said the Dodgers learned a great deal from the way they handled the first-round bye two years ago.
“I felt like we struck a balance of making sure we had the appropriate rest and building up to the weekend games. In the past we had tried a few different things, kind of taking Monday completely off to reset and then using Tuesday to start to get back into the swing of things, then have some higher-intensity days.
“We used it in more creative ways, running sim games, but also using trajectory and different drills that we can do in the cage to make sure we’re sharp.
“I know talking to Muncy and the other guys, it’s really important to keep the guys together and make sure the team is continuing to spend time together and make sure that camaraderie remains that you have in the season, because this doesn’t happen during the year at all.
“To make sure we keep that mindset and the focus of having everybody together and being as prepared as possible for the upcoming series is really important.”
Gomes added that many of the changes the Dodgers made in 2024 came straight from the players.
“It was largely player driven. We’re obviously always trying to find ways to stay sharp and maximize the downtime, but having those conversations with the guys and ultimately what they feel is going to put them in the best position to perform is most important.
“A lot of those adjustments came from the group of players wanting to switch things up and create an atmosphere where they’re just spending more time together and really putting an emphasis on that, which is great.”
Plenty of Pitching Options
One of the biggest decisions still ahead involves the postseason pitching staff.
Gomes said the Dodgers have enough depth that several strong arms could be left off the roster.
“Fortunately enough, we have a lot of really talented arms. I think this is about as deep of a pitching staff as we’ve ever had. So there are a lot of really good options to work through as a group.
“Some of it will depend on who our opponent is and what the ultimate construction of the team looks like, whether they’re going more pitcher heavy, more position player heavy.
“Those are all conversations that we’ll have over the next few days, and it’ll really take shape once we have clarity on who we’re going to play.”
The five-game NLDS format also gives the Dodgers some freedom when deciding how many pitchers to carry.
“You could. It’s certainly an option. We’ve seen the Yankees run with 10 pitchers for the three-game series, and obviously that’s on the extreme end.
“In a five-game series with days off, you can make the argument that you could run one fewer pitcher, but you can also make the argument on the other side of just having as many options as possible to go out and deploy guys in their best lane and have them fresh.
“There are a lot of decisions to be made still and conversations to be had, but knowing the opponent will obviously be crucial to that as well.”
Edgardo Henriquez Trending Well
Gomes also gave an encouraging update on Edgardo Henriquez, who is working his way back.
“We’ll get him some work this week. He’s trending really well. His last live BP went well. He’s responding positively after he throws and isn’t feeling any lingering discomfort.
“We still have a few steps to go, but if that all goes well, then the expectation is he’ll be on the roster.”
That would give the Dodgers another hard-throwing option for a bullpen that already appears to have more viable choices than spots.
The club plans to use many of those pitchers this week to help its hitters stay ready.
“I think that’s a big part of using this time, to make sure we’re in a good place as far as seeing pitching. That’s why we have a lot of our stay-hot guys here.
“Fortunately enough, a lot of those guys throw really hard as well. So we can get live reps that way. We can use machines. We have a lot of different avenues to make sure the timing and feeling velocity, which we know is such a huge part of playoff baseball, stays front of mind.
“Using ’24 as a blueprint and continuing to tweak that and build off of it in the best way we can is the focus.”
Ohtani Feeling Good
Gomes also addressed Shohei Ohtani, who returned late in the regular season after dealing with physical issues.
“Everything is feeling great physically. I thought the swings once he came back overall were in a good place.
“Using these five days to continue to get reps and feel good going into this series is really important, but it feels like he’s in a great spot.”
Gomes was also asked about the communication between Ohtani and the club regarding how he feels physically.
“We always have open conversations with Sho. This is go time for everybody. Guys are ready to go, and he’s no different.
“Him going out and giving everything he has is all we can ask. I think the communication has been good, and I feel confident that he’s going to relay if anything is different.”
How Much Value Is There in a Specialist?
Another roster question involves players who could fill very specific roles, including Josue De Paula, Dalton Rushing or Hyeseong Kim.
Gomes said those choices will depend heavily on the opponent and how manager Dave Roberts envisions using each player.
“We’re in the very beginning stages of those conversations. Depending on the situation, you’ll say, ‘Man, I’m really glad that we carried X,’ or, ‘I wish we had Y.’
“You just have to try to understand how best to utilize the roster.
“As we get closer to Saturday and understand who we’re playing, having the conversations with Doc and the staff and talking through how they envision everybody playing in based on who our opponent is and who’s starting and all that, there are a lot of sliding doors that can happen.
“Depending on what scenario pops up, you’ll want one player over the other. Obviously we don’t know that.
“So it’s really trying to understand what those scenarios could be, how likely they are and then make a decision based off of that.”
Edwin Díaz Looks Ready for October
Gomes closed with a strong assessment of Edwin Díaz, who finished the regular season looking sharp after coming off the injured list.
“I don’t know that we could have asked much more out of Edwin. I think it was like a 50-plus percent strikeout rate when he came back.
“It felt like each outing was more and more sharp and looking more like himself. So it feels like he’s in a great place right now.
“The stuff out of his hand is as good as it’s been all year, and we know that he has pitched in the hottest of hot games in the past and in any role, especially in the postseason.
“He’s looked great, and I’m glad that he’s in the position that he’s in and was able to bounce back.”
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A lifelong baseball fan, Webb has been going to Dodger games since he moved to Los Angeles in 1987. His favorite memory was attending the insane Game 3 of the World Series in 2025 and hugging random Dodgers fans after Freddie’s walkoff homer. He has been writing for Dodgersbeat since 2020.
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