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Dodgers notes: Lance Lynn, Joe Kelly, Ryan Yarbrough

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Oakland Athletics v Los Angeles Dodgers Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

When the Dodgers made the decision to acquire Lance Lynn, the rotation was depleted, struggling all year to find games where a starter went seven innings. While statistics have indicated that Lynn is a well-below league average pitcher this season, the Dodgers have the ability to rejuvenate his career through focusing on making his four-seam fastball his primary pitch to opposing hitters.

Even after securing his first win as a Dodger, Lynn’s numbers are nowhere close to resembling a pitcher that can headline the rotation. Lynn carries a record of 7-9, an ERA of 6.32, a FIP of 5.32, a WHIP of 1.43 and an ERA+ of just 69 in 22 starts between Chicago and Los Angeles. In those 22 starts, Lynn has also allowed the most earned runs and the most home runs in baseball this season.

Although the average statistics and most advanced analytics show a pitcher in the midst of a career on the decline, the Dodgers have emphasized a heavier reliance on his four-seam fastball, a pitch that ranks within the 89th percentile in spin rate. Tuesday’s start against the Oakland Athletics was the first time that Lynn used his four-seamer at over a 60 percent usage rate since his brief stint with the New York Yankees in the 2018 season and the first time in a start since his days with the St. Louis Cardinals during the 2015 season.

Michael Baumann of FanGraphs.com writes increased use of Lynn’s four-seam fastball in his first start as a Dodger and what the 36-year-old has done to deceive hitters with his pitch repertoire in the start:

“Lynn’s four-seamer isn’t an out pitch in and of itself; nobody’s four-seamer is, really. What made it work was Lynn’s ability to contrast it with his other fastballs in order to fool hitters, and on Tuesday night he barely threw his other fastballs at all.”

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“I’ve never had hard feelings when I’ve been traded or signed elsewhere. I understand that more than anybody. If you watch ‘Star Wars,’ I’m more Darth Vader than the good side.”