Dave Roberts won’t announce starter for Game 3

There’s a chance the Dodgers won’t even be playing in a Game 3. If they defeat the Brewers tonight, LA would sweep the series and move to Texas where they’d play the NLDS. However, in the chance they do have to play in a winner-take-all game tomorrow, manager Dave Roberts wouldn’t comment as to who would get the start.

“A lot of that is contingent on tonight,” Roberts said Thursday. “I think we have some good options. But until we see how tonight unfolds, we just don’t know.”

If the Dodgers lose tonight, expect Roberts to announce who it’ll be during the post-game press conference. Should he do that, many would expect it to be Tony Gonsolin.

If Gonsolin were to get the start, we could see the likes of Dustin May or potentially Julio Urias follow him. If May isn’t used tonight, he’d be a perfect candidate to pitch tomorrow. The Dodgers seem to like him in this potential role, as they brought him out of the bullpen to pitch bulk innings towards the end of the season.

In regards to Urias throwing, it’s likely he doesn’t throw tomorrow having pitched yesterday. “There’s always a chance, but I think for me it’s very unlikely,” Roberts said. “Obviously he’ll be down [Thursday], and if it comes to that, we’ll just talk to Julio and see where he’s at.”

Gonsolin was fantastic for LA in 2020. He went 2-2 with a 2.31 ERA. He made eight starts and came out of the bullpen once, posting a 0.83 WHIP, 2.29 FIP and a SO/BB ratio of nearly 7/1. Should he make the start, it would be his first postseason action for the Dodgers. He didn’t make the NLDS roster in 2019.

The most pitches Gonsolin made this season was 90.