Dodgers News: Roberts Finally Running Out of Patience with Craig Kimbrel

After another outing with too much traffic, the Dodgers are finally rethinking the Craig Kimbrel experiment.

It's safe to say the Craig Kimbrel era hasn't gone the way the Dodgers had hoped. The All-Star closer has struggled all season long, drawing the ire of fans more and more with each bad outing. And even the less-than-perfect outings.

Such is the life of the big league closer.

After an outing that saw Krumble Kimbrel serve up a Let-It-Go-ahead home run to Christian Walker of the Diamondbacks, the Dodgers manager was once again faced with questions about his closer.

“The stuff is starting to slide a little bit,” Dave Roberts said. “The fastball velocity. I’ve just got to continue to look at this. We’ve got to have our best guys at the back end. I’ll continue to think through it.”

Kimbrel has served up 4 earned runs over his last 4 appearances following a nice stretch of outings early in September. Hitters are OPSing 1.221 against him over that span and his season ERA has climbed to 4.14. 

Roberts seemed to finally be at the end of his rope.

“The ninth inning is unlike any other inning. Having guys that finish games for us is a good thing. It’s something that I’m going to think through and figure out what’s best for the ballclub.”

That's certainly the most openly critical Doc has been of Kimbrel this season. And it comes at a time when he should be. Difficult decisions are coming up for the Dodgers when it comes to assembling a postseason roster. There are several quality arms on the roster and on the mend that, at this point, are far more deserving of a role in October than Craig Kimbrel. 

Even if Blake Treinen can't make his return in time for meaningful games, guys like Brusdar Graterol, Yency Almonte, Tommy Kahnle, and even David Price can generate outs usually with less stress.

Whatever path Dave and the front office take, it has become crystal clear that a roster without Craig Kimbrel on it is a stronger roster.