Is Justin Wrobleski’s early season success this year really sustainable?
If he throws a fastball like he did Friday night, it could be impossible to stop.
In the Dodgers’ 4-2 win over the visiting Philadelphia Phillies on Saturday night in this weekend’s postseason opener, Wrobleski turned in the most impressive performance yet of his breakout 2026 campaign.
He pitched seven dominant innings, allowing just one run on a single that didn’t come until the sixth. He hit a career-high nine hits, striking out the side twice while also getting a career-best 16 whiffs overall.
More importantly, he found renewed life on his suddenly high-level fastball — averaging a season-best 94.9 mph, topping a staggering 97 mph multiple times, and using the pitch for all nine of his balls in a simply solid start.
“It kind of seemed like a missing piece,” Wrobleski said. “It honestly gives me more confidence to go out there and attack more.”
In fact, earlier this year, the 25-year-old Southern gentleman was trying to connect and do damage control. It’s allowed him to be effective, pitching six or more innings in all but two of his eight starts. But it also left him with one of the lowest strikeout rates in the major leagues this season, raising questions about whether his impressive numbers were just an early mirage, bound to decline.
But then came Friday, when — in a marquee game, against a star-studded Phillies lineup, and with Dodgers legend Clayton Kershaw sitting in the front row to measure — Vrobleski took the mound and showed a different version of himself.
He intimidated hitters in the zone. He dared them to knock over his almost untouchable items.
“He consumed a lot of innings [earlier this season]”But when you can swing and miss in the zone, that’s kind of the clincher for any pitcher,” manager Dave Roberts said.
Wrobleski was very good on Friday, easily outplaying three-time All-Star Zack Wheeler, who gave up four home runs for only the second time in his career against a Dodgers lineup that had steadily found its collective swing.
Freddie Freeman opened the scoring with a solo shot to the opposite field in the first. Max Muncy tied Andy Buggs for the team lead in home runs by smashing his 13th of the year at second.
Shohei Ohtani maintained his recent tear by depositing another solo drive into the Phillies’ bullpen in the third. Even the running back Will Smith got in on the action, making it 4-0 in the fifth inning before the Phillies’ lineup registered its first hit.
“We didn’t overlook the few mistakes he was making,” Muncy said.
Wrobleski, on the other hand, didn’t let the Phillies execute anything.
He averaged 96 mph with his fastball in the first inning, when Kyle Schwarber, Trea Turner and Bryce Harper all homered in succession. From there, he didn’t allow a base runner until the fourth, when Kyle Tucker dropped a fly ball amid a miscommunication with Pages to right-center.
However, Vrubelsky remained unfazed, continued the attack, and escaped the threat unscathed on his way to retiring seven more players in a row – five of which, once again, came via knockout.
“He was on offense,” Roberts said. “It was really good to see that performance.”
Just with two outs in the sixth, Wrobleski lost his no-hit attempt, when Schwarber hit his MLB-leading 22nd home run on a low fastball to straight center.
“I was angry when I gave up that putt,” he said.
It doesn’t matter. He shook it.
Wrobleski sat the next four he faced. He got a fairly early hook after 88 pitches.
It was a surprising departure, but it did little to ease the dominance he had discovered.
“When you can get back to 97, it makes life a lot easier,” Roberts said.
What does it mean
The Dodgers (37-20) have won six straight games, a season-high, and are now 13-2 in their last 15 games.
Of this entire last stretch, this weekend’s series against the resurgent Phillies (29-28) loomed as the most difficult test. Despite a dismal opening month, Philadelphia has gone 20-8 since the managerial change that put former Dodgers skipper Don Mattingly in charge.
Unfortunately, just like in last year’s playoffs, the Dodgers once again took control.
Who’s hot?
It’s worth remembering: Before Friday, Wrobleski had the second-lowest strikeouts per nine innings pitched rate (5.01) among all MLB pitchers with at least 50 innings pitched this season.
Part of that was by design, as Wrobleski intentionally tried to fill the zone to encourage soft contact and quick action. However, part of it has left the third-year pitcher frustrated, as his fastball velocity has dropped from 96 mph last year (when he largely exited the bullpen) to 93.7 mph in his return to the rotation this season.
However, last week, Vrubelsky said something finally clicked.
Although he suffered a five-run, five-inning shutout against the Milwaukee Brewers, he finished that game by exceeding 97 mph for the first time this year.
“I can’t tell you the exact thing,” he said. “I felt kind of back to normal, kind of carried on tonight.”
Have you ever done that?
By playing the fastball and executing his drives into the zone with pinpoint accuracy, Wrobleski simply overwhelmed the Phillies’ famed offense. His fastball alone accounted for 13 swings and misses. He lifted two other hitters by dribbling called third strikes.
“I wouldn’t say it was something that bothered me,” Wrobleski said of his previous speed drop. “It was just something out of the ordinary for me. Like, I was happy to get a bunch of results, but it was weird how the results came out. And like I said, like you’re always going to come out. But yeah, you want more swings and misses… and tonight I felt back to normal.”
Who is not
Those who thought Wrobleski was ready to step back after he gave up 14 runs in his previous three outings, raising his ERA from 1.25 to 3.07.
Those games, of course, epitomized what could go wrong with Vrobleski’s throwing back game. Softly hit balls found holes. Rare fouls were sent off the field. When he needs to escape the break, he requires some help from his defense behind him.
However, Friday showed a different side of Wrobleski’s potential — showing his ability to be a solid arm when the heater is thrown a little harder.
“It gives him more margin,” Roberts said. “Early on in his first five or six starts, there were a lot of balls in play, obviously some soft contact, balls to guys. But obviously you bring guys into play. Tonight, it was probably his best game. When you can get guys out and get swinging and hitting, hitting strikes like he did, a really dominant performance against a really good ballclub.”
the next
The Dodgers and Phillies resume their marquee matchup on Saturday, when Ruki Sasaki (3-3, 4.93) will face Philadelphia lefty Jesús Luzardo (4-4, 4.38).