What is a bullpen game? Dodgers turn to relief pitchers to clinch ...

Who will get the ball for the Los Angeles Dodgers when they attempt to sweep the World Series? A relief pitcher by the name of TBA.

The actual name of the pitcher who will face the New York Yankees in the first inning of Game 4 on Tuesday was still a mystery as of a few hours before first pitch. The only certainty was that, in this second of potentially three straight games at Yankee Stadium, it would be a relief pitcher.

Yes, a game that the Dodgers hope will end with a World Series title will start as a bullpen game. This after manager Dave Roberts pulled starter Walker Buehler in Game 3 after five shutout innings and just 76 pitches and used six relievers to get the final 12 outs, giving the Dodgers a commanding 3-0 series lead.

"There are five or six guys that have got a save maybe in this season," Roberts told reporters at the start of the playoffs. "I feel very comfortable. They've all pitched in leverage, whether it be the fifth, the sixth, the seventh or the ninth. Whatever pitcher I feel is best in that particular part of the game, part of the lineup, that's who I'm going to use."

So who will he use in the first inning of Game 4?

What is a bullpen game?

A bullpen game is when a baseball team uses a combination of relief pitchers to open the game rather than a traditional starting pitcher.  

Who is starting for the Dodgers?

Ben Casparius, who pitched in just three games out of the bullpen during the regular season, will makes his first major league start as the Dodgers' opener in Game 4 of the World Series.

The 25-year-old has made three relief appearances during the 2024 postseason, combining for 4 1/3 scoreless innings. 

Why do teams use a bullpen game?

Bullpen games were traditionally used when a team was short a starter due to injury or when there was an unexpected change in the schedule that impacted the rotation.

They have now become an effective postseason strategy, particularly for the Dodgers, whose original starting rotation has been decimated by the losses of Tyler Glasnow and Clayton Kershaw.

How many bullpen games have the Dodgers had?

The Dodgers have gone 2-1 in three bullpen games during the 2024 playoffs.

Ryan Brasier opened two of those games, pitching 1 1/3 scoreless innings in Game 4 of the Division Series with the Dodgers facing elimination against the San Diego Padres and allowing one run over one inning of work in a Game 2 loss to the New York Mets in the NLCS.  The Dodgers went with Michael Kopech as the opener in Game 6 of the NLCS and he pitched one inning in a game Los Angeles won 10-5 to advance to the World Series.

The New York Times reported that the Dodgers have used nine bullpen games in recent postseasons, going 6-3.