Tuesday, February 17, 2026

Copyrighted by Sarah Morris, 2026

On Tuesday, Dave Roberts addressed the team, where he emphasized maintaining focus on the ultimate goal of achieving a three-peat.

While the media is concentrating on Edwin Díaz and Tanner Scott, Blake Treinen is an essential part of the success of the Los Angeles Dodgers’ bullpen.

In 2024, after missing almost two previous seasons with right shoulder problems, Treinen was a surprising World Series hero. Every Dodger fan was confident that Treinen would play a major role in the 2025 Dodger bullpen.

Treinen started the 2025 season well, but in April, he suffered a moderate sprain to his right forearm. Anything with a pitcher’s forearm automatically means Tommy John surgery, but Treinen avoided the surgery.

Treinen returned to the active roster in August. His pitches had the incredible movement that made Treinen one of the elite major league relievers. However, he didn’t have the necessary command to be successful. After a few bad outings, the media and fans turned on Treinen. Despite closing out Game 1 in the NLCS against the Milwaukee Brewers, overall Treinen was a non-factor in the postseason.

Since Treinen is turning 38 in June, the media and Dodger fans have written Treinen off as making a significant impact on the 2026 Dodgers. I am not ready to write him off because he is “too old.”

Age is an easy narrative. Yes, older players need more time to recover from an outing than younger players. However, older players have knowledge of how to get opposing batters out.

Tuesday, Treinen acknowledged that he didn’t know how much he needed rest and recovery time. Fans underestimate the toll rehabilitation takes on a player’s body and mind. While rehabbing from an injury, players do strenuous and dull exercises without any praise from playing in front of fans.

The Dodgers need Treinen to perform well at the end of the bullpen. He has been a great eight-inning, right-handed setup man. He can be nasty against right-handed hitters. If the opposition has many left-handed batters, Tanner Scott should pitch. Without Brusdar Graterol, Evan Philips, and Brock Stewart, the Dodgers don’t have an experienced right-handed setup man unless Treinen steps up.

The Dodgers can have a strong bullpen in 2026, but they need Treinen to rebound from an injury-plagued 2025 season.