How long will Kershaw be down on the farm?

[sandman042]

as i look at it now the most inngs kershaw has ever pitch in a yr is 125 and hes only 20!!! so to some pt either hes gonna be in the bullpen for dodgers or starting.. if he does start i hope he somehow makes the dodgers soon as a reliver to kep his inngs down so second half of yr he can start wen it counts.. im guessing the most they will let him pitch is 150 or so inngs.... but if he starts off the bat he can only pitch so many inngs before dodgers shut him down... but im not worried..

as for jeff niemen hes good but i dont see him mix - league material off the bat. he did ok in AAA last yr w/ 3.98 era..... and pitching in al east also.. maybe al only leagues but i dont see him making a big contribution unless ur in a really deep league..

[Syfo-Dyas]

I dont really see a reason to use Kershaw in the majors before roster expansion.
The Rotation is fine
the bullpen is good
theres no need to overuse the kid.

[anti elian]

I dont really see a reason to use Kershaw in the majors before roster expansion.
The Rotation is fine
the bullpen is good
theres no need to overuse the kid.

There isn't much bullpen depth. Broxton and Saito are great, but that's about it. If Saito goes down then it's just Broxton. That wouldn't be a good situation for a team with postseason aspirations.

[Wrangor]

I agree - Bullpen is weak, and starting pitching staff is fairly old (except for Billingsley). Put Kershaw in the bullpen, and have him pitch the 6-7th innings when he is needed. Start stretching him out after the allstar break and give him a shot.

[Syfo-Dyas]

I dont really see a reason to use Kershaw in the majors before roster expansion.
The Rotation is fine
the bullpen is good
theres no need to overuse the kid.

There isn't much bullpen depth. Broxton and Saito are great, but that's about it. If Saito goes down then it's just Broxton. That wouldn't be a good situation for a team with postseason aspirations.

Postseason aspirations? So that depends on Kershaw. Interesting.
I though you need good Starting piching that can go deep into games.
The Dodgers are far better in that regard than any other team in the Div.
Some offense is nice to have too, and the Dodgers are second best in the division in offense.

And only the Padres have better bullpen in the division! But they got no offense. A-Gonzo cant do it alone.
The Rockies has as good of a bullpen as the Dodgers. But their rotation is a suspect. They could melt down in a second.
The Arizona and Giants bullpen are worse.

And why would it be better for the team to put their projected future ace into a bullpen, if thats not really good for development.
Now that the Yankees did it with Chamberlain, it is the only way?
I havent seen Peavy, Verlander, Felix, Zambrano, Kazmir, Lincecum etc.. pitchin in the bullpen a year or two before they started. Or you think those teams had no playoff aspiration?

BTW what is wrong with Beimel, Kuo and Proctor anyway?

[anti elian]

Postseason aspirations? So that depends on Kershaw. Interesting.
I though you need good Starting piching that can go deep into games.
The Dodgers are far better in that regard than any other team in the Div.

You can have the Dodgers rotation, I'll take the Padres' or Diamondbacks.

Some offense is nice to have too, and the Dodgers are second best in the division in offense.

And only the Padres have better bullpen in the division! But they got no offense. A-Gonzo cant do it alone.
The Rockies has as good of a bullpen as the Dodgers. But their rotation is a suspect. They could melt down in a second.
The Arizona and Giants bullpen are worse.

...and I'll take the Padres training staff, so there! Ha! I don't understand what point you're trying to make here. The Dodgers could use a quality 7th inning guy and if Saito has lingering injury problems they'll need someone to setup Broxton. Would you really trust Proctor or Beimel in either of those roles?

And why would it be better for the team to put their projected future ace into a bullpen, if thats not really good for development.
Now that the Yankees did it with Chamberlain, it is the only way?

The Yankees aren't the only team to have done that. Santana spent a good stretch of time in the bullpen. If you recall, your Dodgers did the same thing with Billingsley. He ended the 06 season in the pen and pitched in relief during the 06 playoffs.

I havent seen Peavy, Verlander, Felix, Zambrano, Kazmir, Lincecum etc.. pitchin in the bullpen a year or two before they started. Or you think those teams had no playoff aspiration?

BTW what is wrong with Beimel, Kuo and Proctor anyway?

Yes, but there are several examples of young arms getting experience in the bullpen before getting stretched out. It makes even more sense for a team like the Dodgers to do it because they have pretty good rotation depth and a lack of depth in the pen. There's nothing wrong with any of those guys except that they're pretty mediocre. If Saito goes down, would you want any of them in an 8th inning role?

[anti elian]

Another strong outing (I need to stop pimping him):

Kershaw tossed four scoreless, one-hit innings Sunday against the Red Sox before being sent down to Double-A after the game.
Spin: Kershaw ends the spring having allowed one run in 14 innings. We'll see him in Los Angeles sometime in the near future, perhaps as early as this summer. There's no better pitching prospect in the game.

[Breaking News] RotoWire | Sun, March 30

[Syfo-Dyas]

You can have the Dodgers rotation, I'll take the Padres' or Diamondbacks.

Fine. The D'backs and Padres have a two headed moster. Randy is not as dominating anymore and Maddux isnt getting younger either. The 4-5s are just bad.
The Dodgers have 5 good starters. Yes I say Loaiza will be fine.

Some offense is nice to have too, and the Dodgers are second best in the division in offense.
And only the Padres have better bullpen in the division! But they got no offense. A-Gonzo cant do it alone.
The Rockies has as good of a bullpen as the Dodgers. But their rotation is a suspect. They could melt down in a second.
The Arizona and Giants bullpen are worse.

...and I'll take the Padres training staff, so there! Ha! I don't understand what point you're trying to make here. The Dodgers could use a quality 7th inning guy and if Saito has lingering injury problems they'll need someone to setup Broxton. Would you really trust Proctor or Beimel in either of those roles?

Good starters go deep into games so the need for a lights out 7th inning guy is not that big.
If they dont, the team is losing anyway at least half of the times. Than again you dont need a lights out 7th inning guy.
I see no reason yet, that Saito will have a problem. Its spring training.
What makes you think that Beimel or Proctor will fail? They have good staff.

And why would it be better for the team to put their projected future ace into a bullpen, if thats not really good for development.
Now that the Yankees did it with Chamberlain, it is the only way?

The Yankees aren't the only team to have done that. Santana spent a good stretch of time in the bullpen. If you recall, your Dodgers did the same thing with Billingsley. He ended the 06 season in the pen and pitched in relief during the 06 playoffs.

After Billingsley was called up he started. Only in September he moved to the pen.
Santana was a rule 5 player. Noone projected him as an ace starter. So I dont see any similarities here with Joba.
Oh and on a side note Im not a Dodgers fan.

I havent seen Peavy, Verlander, Felix, Zambrano, Kazmir, Lincecum etc.. pitchin in the bullpen a year or two before they started. Or you think those teams had no playoff aspiration?

Yes, but there are several examples of young arms getting experience in the bullpen before getting stretched out. It makes even more sense for a team like the Dodgers to do it because they have pretty good rotation depth and a lack of depth in the pen. There's nothing wrong with any of those guys except that they're pretty mediocre. If Saito goes down, would you want any of them in an 8th inning role?

I dont have a problem with that. Experience in the majors is oke.
But you should not put your future ace into a bullpen for a full season, just to cover 7th inning.
If Saito goes down the Dodgers could trade for a reliever, even with closer experience. There will be enough available. Gregg, Chad Cordero, Sherill just to name a few.

[Wrangor]

With Kershaw being sent down, and not being used in the bullpen, I would say that it will be atleast late May/June before there is even a chance of him being called up...unless we have an injury to the starting staff of course. Either way, I think it is pretty much a guarantee that he will get the callup this year at some point.

[Montana168]

i know he's probably not going to be called up before the all star break at the earliest unless there is a major injury...but i wish yahoo would just add him to the database already so i can stop checking the added players list!!! i want them to add him so i don't have to worry about losing him to another team anymore and he can ride the pine. (i'm talking about a dynasty league).

sorry had to vent...haha.