As Tony Gonsolin battles through his ankle injury, his chances of being ready for Los Angeles Dodgers Opening Day are starting run thin. If Gonsolin were to miss Opening Day, manager Dave Roberts and the Dodgers seem to have a backup plan in place.
If Gonsolin were to miss Opening Day, his rotation spot would go to Ryan Pepiot or Michael Grove, via Jack Harris of the Los Angeles Times. Pepiot and Grove are two young pitchers the Dodgers are trying to get a better look at.
Los Angeles has more impressive young pitching in Gavin Stone and Bobby Miller. With Gonsolin now banged up, Roberts is trying to get a good look at the Dodgers' pitching options moving forward.
“They're gonna get an opportunity,” Roberts said of the pitching quartet. “That's a good thing for them individually and also for the organization, to kind of promote from within.”
Of the four pitchers, Pepiot and Grove have jumped to the front of the line. Either one would earn a Dodgers' rotation spot if Gonsolin can't go. Roberts has already confirmed that Gonsolin's recovery would be a, “slow process.” As Opening Day draws closer, the opportunity for Pepiot and Grove only increases.
Pepiot is the Dodgers' sixth-best prospect while Grove comes in at 23, via MLB Pipeline. While Roberts and Los Angeles would prefer to have Tony Gonsolin on the mound, his ankle injury seems serious enough to hold him out at the beginning of the season. In that case, LA will look to their young flamethrowers to take his spot.