Justin Wrobleski pitches 8 innings as Dodgers shut out Mets

LOS ANGELES — Last on the list when the rotation was compiled in March, Justin Wrobleski moved to the front of the line on Monday night with the longest outing from a Dodgers starter this season.

The left-hander did not make his first appearance as the sixth starter until last week, and there was no doubting how fresh he looks now. Wrobleski did not allow a hit until the fifth inning and went an efficient eight innings in a 4-0 victory over the New York Mets in the opener of a three-game series at Dodger Stadium.

Left-hander Tanner Scott finished off the shutout with a scoreless ninth inning.

“You know, I’m hoping there’s plenty of other opportunities like that to get a complete game,” Wrobleski said. “That’s something that I think is really cool and not a lot of people do it anymore. That’s the most (innings) I’ve ever had in a game. So I’m going to try to keep building and get myself in a spot where hopefully I can complete some of those.”

The innings were just what the Dodgers were looking for with closer Edwin Diaz dealing with an undisclosed injury that has limited his availability at the back end of games.

Wrobleski touted a comfort level and a sense of belonging at the tail end of the spring and it showed in his 90-pitch outing when the Mets never threatened to score.

He said there was never a discussion about going out for the final inning. The Dodgers’ last complete-game shutout was thrown by Gavin Stone in 2024. Before that, it was Walker Buehler in 2022.

“Something that I got to earn,” Wrobleski said. “… It wasn’t a big like, ‘Oh, I want to go back out there.’ I trust (Manager Dave Roberts) and at the same time, I know they’re protecting me and keeping my best interest in mind, which we really appreciate as players for this organization. That’s something they do so well.”

Roberts confirmed Wrobleski’s suspicions that the decision to have somebody else pitch the ninth was precautionary.

“I think for me, the decision was he hasn’t gone more than five innings in a long time, so now you’re talking about the health of the player,” Roberts said. “And so that’s why, when we talk about pitch counts and things like that, there’s more to that than pitch counts.”

A tough decision will have to be made soon with left-hander Blake Snell close to making his season debut as he recovers from left shoulder fatigue. Wrobleski made a solid case to remain one of the team’s six starters.

“I’ll do whatever they need me to do,” Wrobleski said. “I love playing for this team. I love winning. So as long as I can be here, I want to help the team win and do my job. So whatever that job is, I think we’ll be fine.”

The day still was not without its concerns for the rotation. Shohei Ohtani was hit in the back of the right shoulder by a 94-mph sinker in the first inning from Mets left-hander David Peterson but remained in the game. Ohtani is next scheduled to pitch on Wednesday.

“I’m happy he’s not pitching tomorrow,” Roberts said. “Probably a bruise but I don’t think it will impact his start.”

That pitch to the shoulder ended up being worth a run when Ohtani scored on a single from Will Smith. But that was the lone run the Dodgers could muster in the opening inning despite having their first four hitters reach base.

Ohtani did extend his on-base streak to 47 consecutive games courtesy of Peterson. He is now tied with Ron Cey for the second-longest on-base streak in the Dodgers’ L.A. era history and the fourth-longest in club history behind Duke Snider’s run of 58 games in 1954 when the team was in Brooklyn.

After a visit at the mound in the opening inning, Peterson closed out the frame with consecutive strikeouts of Freddie Freeman, Andy Pages and Max Muncy.

Pages got his revenge in the third while continuing his torrid pace to start the season. After a leadoff walk by Kyle Tucker and a one-out walk by Teoscar Hernandez, Pages hit his fifth home run of the season on a line drive into the field-level seats near the foul pole.

“I was just looking for a ball up, something up above the zone, above my hands. Just looking for that pitch,” Pages said through an interpreter. “He really doesn’t throw that overpowering fastball, so just looking more for a zone, specifically, over a pitch type.”

After Pages entered the game with a major-league best .429 batting average, the mark dipped to .417 while his run-production totals continued to soar. He now has an MLB-best 20 RBIs.

“You know, it’s going to be hard to imagine hitting .400, but I will say the at-bat quality, the center field defense, that is the player we hoped (to have),” Roberts said. “I just think that the process, the work, the prep, all that stuff, he’s really locked in and he’s got an understanding of what it takes for him to get ready for a big league ball game.”