The Los Angeles Dodgers began 2025 with a rotation so deep that many wondered how they would even find room for everyone. Well, just weeks into the season, that narrative has shifted dramatically. Now, the Dodgers are not managing abundance, but rather managing their survival. The excitement that once surrounded this “superteam” quickly turned into frustration and disbelief.

Pitching injuries have hit them like a wave, and the tide is not slowing down. Blake Snell went down early, and then came Tyler Glasnow a few weeks later. Then, Clayton Kershaw, Emmet Sheehan, Kyle Hurt, and River Ryan went down—one by one, the pitching staff has crumbled. While some of the injuries were expected, the time frame and the sheer numbers that have hit them are alarming.

Adding to that growing list is Roki Sasaki—their 14th injured pitcher! The Dodgers recalled RHP J.P. Feyereisen and placed Sasaki in the IL. At this point, the Los Angeles Dodgers are not dealing with bad luck—rather, a full-blown crisis.

The 23-year-old rookie phenom from Japan was one of the Dodgers’ biggest catches this offseason. But Sasaki has now landed on the IL with a right shoulder impingement. And things have looked rocky almost all season until now. Sure, he showed flashes of brilliance, even touching his usual numbers like those he posted in Japan, but things only unraveled after that. With Arizona, he gave up five runs in four innings and failed to record a strikeout.

After that outing, Roki Sasaki told his team that his arm was sore and skipped the next bullpen session. Dave Roberts clarified to MLB.com, “Physically, he was a little bit sore afterwards, and that’s something that we’re still kind of trying to figure out. You know what’s normal and what’s kind of not normal. … We want to make sure that he’s in a good spot, physically and mentally.” For now, Roberts said, there is no confirmed date of his return. It’s a tough blow, considering all the expectations.

But Sasaki has a 4.3 ERA over the eight starts, so not the debut that the fans had hoped for. But at least he was on the roster. Now with him gone and injuries piling up left and right, fans are asking—is this just bad luck? And most importantly, who is responsible? And fingers are being pointed at the training staff.

Fans fume as Dodgers’ pitching woes reach a breaking point

One user, plain and simple, asked the Dodgers to fire Thomas Albert, the head athletic trainer. Now, this response is not surprising, because frankly, something seems to have gone seriously off the rails behind the scenes. Sasaki is now the third Dodger dealing with shoulder issues, right behind Snell and Glasnow. So what is it that LA is doing that’s ending up putting these pitchers on the IL? Plus, this is not new; last year it was the same story with the pitching staff.

Almost boiling with fury, one user said that at some point, someone has to be fired from the training staff, expressing the same emotion. And if that sounds extreme, it’s not without reason that fans feel this way. Now, according to USA Today’s Bob Nightengale, no team in Major League history has ever used 11 different starting pitchers before May. Here, the Dodgers are setting records for all the wrong reasons. With 14 in IL, the rotation is in tatters. So, something is broken, and the call for accountability is mounting.

It might sound harsh, but not all fans are blaming the injury on bad luck. They are squarely pointing fingers at the Dodgers for letting this happen. And well, they might have a point. Because if you listen closely, Roberts kind of let the truth slip. After a blowout loss to the A’s, Roberts said, “What we gather is he’s felt some discomfort for the last few weeks…but given where we’re at as a pitching staff, he wanted to continue to go and persevere and fight through everything until he felt that his performance was going to be compromised.” So it’s not a surprise that damage has been done, because they let Sasaki be in the rotation so long.

One user said boldly that for the Dodgers, it’s over. And, well, they might not be painting a completely wrong picture. Sure, the offense is doing well, but without pitching being at par, how are they supposed to be competing in October for the rings they so want again? Sasaki, meanwhile, was supposed to light up MLB. Instead, his stats now tell a different story. For example, out of 133 pitchers who threw at least 30 innings this season, only San Diego’s Randy Vasquez has a worse strikeout-to-walk rate difference than Sasaki. Now let’s not forget—this is not any other kid; he is a generational talent. Recently, Verlander, in fact, said he doesn’t think the spark is gone. But the bigger question is, can the Dodgers figure out how to unlock his talent?

Amongst all the chaos, one user said he had some good advice for the Dodgers, saying that Sasaki should go to the IL now. Now it’s hard to argue with that. The last thing the Dodgers need is to push a star pitcher hard and risk a long-term injury. Plus, given that he goes now, he can make a safe return when he is deeply needed in the rotation. And given that Hall of Famer Kershaw is set to make his debut and Glasnow is also finally cleared to start playing catch, Sasaki can sit back.

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The Dodgers are surely in a tough situation right now. Any more setbacks to maybe Yoshinobu Yamamoto or Dustin May, or even Landon Knack, and they would be in deep trouble. What do you think of these pitching injuries?