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Lance Lynn looking forward to ‘clean slate’ with Dodgers

July 30, 2023

LOS ANGELES –The trade to the Dodgers this week has given Lance Lynn a clean slate. But he realizes nothing can entirely wipe away a 6.47 ERA.

“It’s a clean slate because you’re on a new team, but you don’t forget the last four months, either,” said Lynn who officially joined the Dodgers Sunday. “There’s a lot of positives that you can take and the negatives that I’ve had this year, I need to figure out how to make sure those don’t come back up.”

Lynn’s negatives have been obvious. He has allowed more runs (94) and home runs (28) than any pitcher in baseball and more hits (130) than anyone in the American League where he spent the first four months with the Chicago White Sox.

But Lynn looks at other things – like a career-high strikeout rate (10.8 per nine innings) – and knows he must be doing something right.

“I’ve had some ups and downs this year, for sure,” he said. “When you look at ERA and wins and losses, it’s the worst I’ve had in my career. And then you look at strikeouts per nine and stuff like that, they’re the best I’ve ever had.

“It’s been a weird year, but hopefully we can make sure that the ERA and wins take care of themselves and we keep the other things going in a positive direction and maybe a change of scenery will help that.”

The Dodgers are also likely to have some suggestions for Lynn on pitch usage and sequencing. But Lynn said Sunday morning that he hadn’t had that conversation with pitching coaches Mark Prior and Connor McGuiness yet.

“I just got here today. So I’m just kind of putting names with faces right now,” said Lynn who rode to the stadium with fellow White Sox evacuee and friend Joe Kelly. “I’m going to throw a bullpen and we’ll get a chance to talk after that. Right now I’m just trying to stay ready for when my turn is going to be and go from there.

“I physically feel good. So when you feel good, you know that you can go out there and be capable of a lot of things.”

The plan is for Lynn to start Tuesday against the Oakland A’s, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said, giving him five days’ rest since his last start with the White Sox. Right-hander Tony Gonsolin will start Wednesday while left-hander Julio Urias gets pushed back to Thursday, That will give Urias eight days off between starts to let a cracked nail resolve itself, Roberts said.

BETTS STATUS

Mookie Betts was out of the starting lineup for the second consecutive game Sunday due to a sore right ankle. Betts injured his ankle while avoiding a pitch during Friday’s game but Roberts said the swelling has gone down and he expects Betts to be back in the lineup after the off day Monday.

“Could he play (Sunday)? Certainly. With an off day tomorrow, is it more beneficial to potentially give him three days off? Absolutely,” Roberts said. “I thought it was a no-brainer to give him that extra day.”

Roberts said the ankle will not limit Betts to right field or second base and he will be “available for anything” when he returns.

ROSARIO WORK

Acquired from the Cleveland Guardians this week, Amed Rosario has been almost exclusively a shortstop during his career. But the Dodgers plan to use Rosario at second base and in the outfield.

Rosario was on the field before Sunday’s game working with coaches Dino Ebel and Chris Woodward at second base. Rosario has never played there before but Roberts said he would be comfortable playing Rosario there immediately.

ALSO

In order to add Lynn to the active roster, the Dodgers optioned right-hander Tyson Miller back to Triple-A Oklahoma City. It is Miller’s fifth option this season (between the Dodgers and Brewers) so if he is promoted again he cannot be returned to the minors without clearing waivers first.