While the Los Angeles Dodgers have remained the best team in baseball, at least by record, some things haven’t exactly gone according to plan.
One thing that sticks out is the Craig Kimbrel situation.
He’s been the closer for the Dodgers for the vast majority of the season, but recent struggles have caused manager Dave Roberts to have to shuffle things around a little in their bullpen, with the team now going with a closer by committee approach, which can be dangerous.
Kimbrel sounded off on his struggles and said that he felt like he was trying to do too much with his fastballs.
When asked if he thinks he can still contribute, he had this to say.
Craig Kimbrel said he was trying to do too much and yanked some fastballs. Was frustrated with the number of non competitive pitches.
Asked if he thinks he can contribute in October, he said, “I know I can. I just got to do it.”
— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) September 28, 2022
Kimbrel Assesses His Struggles
We know Kimbrel has solid postseason experience and can be a weapon out of the bullpen.
He made a few playoff appearances with the Atlanta Braves early in his career and was part of the Boston Red Sox run to a World Series title in 2018.
The experience is certainly there, and he has been able to contribute to some key playoff runs.
But his 2022 season hasn’t exactly gone according to plan.
The 34-year-old right-hander is 6-7 in 59 appearances with a 4.02 ERA, taking the loss last night against the San Diego Padres.
He’s posted a 5.68 ERA in his last seven games and has blown five of his 27 save opportunities this season.
The Dodgers need Kimbrel to get right soon.
He’s a key piece of their bullpen and if he isn’t right soon, the Dodgers are going to have some serious problems at the back end of games in the postseason.
We’ll see if he can fix his problems.
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