The Dodgers' Bullpen

Coming into this spring training, the Dodgers have made the bullpen stronger and I was very happy with the moves that they made to improve the bullpen. They brought back closer Brandon League with a new contract for three years for $21 million. They also added left hand pitcher J.P. Howell, which I believe is a very good signing for the Dodgers because with the loss of Randy Choate to free agency, it was really needed with current Dodger, Scott Elbert, who had arm surgery and is expected to be out until May.

All the pitchers that are returning are setup man Kenley Jansen, Ronald Belisario, Matt Guerrier and Steven "Paco" Rodriguez. Chris Capuano or Aaron Harang or Ted Lilly or Chad Billingsley will all be battling for spots in both the starting rotation and the bullpen.

I expect Chris Capuano to make the team in the bullpen and Ted Lilly to start the season on the Disabled List (DL). Capuano over the other candidates because he carries a unique talent that the other pitchers don't have, throwing left handed. Lilly is staying on because he has a contract with the team. Billingsley will in the starting rotation. That leaves Harang left and he will be traded.

There are non-roster invites such as Peter Moylan, Mark Lowe and Kevin Gregg who are all vying for the last two bullpen spots. They will also have to compete with the pitchers who lose out on the starting rotation spot. I believe it will be Mark Lowe or Peter Moylan that will compete for the last spot because Lowe has the playoff experience that can be important to the Dodgers' playoff success. Moylan is a hard throwing, flaming pitcher that could be useful on the team, but I believe that his arm could blow out easily, considering that he is coming off a serious shoulder surgery. Since they are non-roster players means it is a strong chance they do not make the team. The odds are against them with a 50-50 percent chance.