Chad Billingsley’s recent performances have left a lot to be desired. The All-Star starter has struggled in his recent outings to say the least: He hasn’t gone past the sixth inning since July 5, he has given up a total of 17 runs in his last 28.2 innings, and his ERA has been on a steady incline, rising from 3.14 at the beginning of July to 4.05 as of now. His woes forced Joe Torre to skip his turn in the rotation, and he now has two starts to return to the team’s good graces. But for now, the debate rages on: Should Billingsley have a slot in the postseason rotation?
Randy Wolf and Hiroki Kuroda are assured starting spots come October. Kershaw will most likely get a spot if he can recover from his shoulder injury in time. Vicente Padilla is the favorite to land in the ‘pen, as he has not gone past six innings in any of his starts with the Dodgers. Jon Garland and Billingsley are the combatants fighting for the last slot in the rotation. Garland for all intensive purposes has been the better pitcher. In four starts with Los Angeles, he is 3-0 with an ERA of 2.33 and if anything else has been consistent. The numbers point to Garland, but the talent points to Chad.
Unless Billingsley throws two amazing starts or Garland implodes, the mid-season acquisition from Arizona will most likely get the fourth starting slot. It’s up to Billingsley to show he deserves a second chance.
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Randy Wolf, Hiroki Kuroda, and Clayton Kershaw against the Phillies or Cardinals in the playoffs? Don’t worry about who your fourth starter is, he won’t be pitching anyway.
Amen! Dodgers aren’t going anywhere in October because they don’t have any pitching. Period.