The Dodgers are already mapping out Tyler Glasnow’s October path, and it sounds a lot more conventional this time around.
Manager Dave Roberts made it clear that Glasnow is not being lined up for an early bullpen cameo before a possible start in the NLDS. Instead, Roberts pointed to him as part of the club’s rotation plan, with Game 4 looking like the likeliest landing spot.
“He’s one of four (starting pitchers),” Roberts began. “I think it’s a little different with the layout of the games in the DS, not playing in the Wild Card also.
Could he factor in one of the first three games? Possibly.
“I would say most likely Game 4. I don’t see him out of the bullpen early. We’re going to talk through that in the next couple days here.”
That’s a different setup from last postseason, when Glasnow’s first appearance of the 2025 playoffs came in relief during the National League Division Series. The Dodgers leaned heavily on their starters throughout that run, and Glasnow was one of the arms they used in multiple ways.
In the 2025 NLDS, the schedule gave Los Angeles an off day between Games 1 and 2 at Citizens Bank Park. That opening allowed Glasnow to throw in Game 1 out of the bullpen, then come back five days later to start Game 4.
He handled the relief outing by throwing 34 pitches over 1.2 scoreless innings, then followed it up with six shutout innings in a series-clinching win in Game 4, even while dealing with cramping issues.
This year’s bracket is set up differently. The Dodgers’ 2026 NLDS schedule has a more standard rhythm, with off days only for travel after Game 2 and a possible Game 4. If Los Angeles wanted to use Glasnow the way it did a year ago, he would be starting a potential Game 4 on just three days’ rest.
That’s not the plan, at least not at this stage. The Dodgers are not expected to ask that much of him in the middle of a playoff series. Still, that doesn’t close the door on Glasnow working out of the bullpen later in the postseason if the team advances.
In those situations, it’s common for a starter to hold off on a bullpen session in case he’s needed in relief, particularly in an elimination game.
And Glasnow has already shown he can do both. Half of his six appearances in the 2025 postseason came out of the bullpen.
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