The Los Angeles Dodgers wrapped up a nine-game road trip with a 6-3 record across three series. They took two of three from the Phillies, won the series in Washington, and claimed two of three against the New York Mets. At 67-39, they own the best record in baseball.
But Sunday’s 8-3 loss to the Mets in the series finale revealed something the overall numbers have been masking. The bullpen is starting to show cracks, and the timing could not be worse with October on the horizon.
The good news is that reinforcement is on the way, and it arrives this week.
The Bullpen Showed Its Vulnerability in New York
Emmet Sheehan gave the Dodgers five strong innings on Sunday, holding the Mets to a single run while striking out five. He left with a 3-1 lead and 87 pitches on his arm. From there, the bullpen unraveled.
Jack Dreyer entered in the sixth and walked two batters before being pulled. Evan Phillips came in to clean up the mess and instead gave up a three-run homer to Tyrone Taylor that flipped the game. Phillips has been fighting it since returning from Tommy John surgery, allowing four homers across fewer than seven innings. The stuff is there. The consistency is not. Coming back from that kind of procedure takes time, and Phillips is still searching for the version of himself that the Dodgers built their late-inning plans around.
“I’ve got to give him some different situations,” manager Dave Roberts said.
Two innings later, Will Klein surrendered another three-run shot as the Mets scored seven times after Sheehan’s departure. Klein was roughed up for six runs across three appearances on the road trip. Sunday was the worst of them.
“For what we’re trying to do, it’s just got to be better,” Roberts said.
The bullpen has posted a 3.79 ERA on the season, among the best marks in the National League. Earlier in the year, the relief corps strung together 38 scoreless innings in a row. But the struggles that surfaced on this trip came at a time when the postseason picture is starting to take shape.
GettyNEW YORK, NEW YORK – JULY 26: Tyrone Taylor #28 of the New York Mets celebrates with Luis Robert Jr. #88 and Carson Benge #3 of the New York Mets after hitting a three-run home run during the sixth inning of the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field on July 26, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)
Díaz Returns to Change the Equation
Edwin Díaz is expected to rejoin the Dodgers on Wednesday when they host the Seattle Mariners at Dodger Stadium.
“It’ll be good to get Edwin back,” Roberts said.
Díaz will step right back into the ninth-inning role. That move has a ripple effect on the rest of the bullpen. Roberts will have more flexibility to deploy his best arms when the game is on the line, regardless of the inning.
The Dodgers signed Díaz to a significant deal specifically for moments like these.
A healthy version of him anchoring the back end of the bullpen gives Roberts the kind of late-game certainty that was missing on this road trip. The structure of the bullpen changes the moment Díaz takes the mound Wednesday.
GettyThe Los Angeles Dodgers revealed why Edwin Diaz wasn’t used on Tuesday, April 14, against the New York Mets.
Final Word for the Dodgers
The Dodgers have won at a historic pace this season despite playing without several key contributors for months. The bullpen held up for most of that stretch, but the recent struggles are there and Sunday exposed them slightly.
Díaz’s return addresses this concern at exactly the right time. The closer is almost back.
Wednesday cannot come soon enough.
Dodgers Make Edwin Díaz Decision Ahead of Mariners Series