Kolarek's role as a left-handed specialist could be challenged by MLB's new rule requiring pitchers to face at least three batters or pitch to the end of the half-inning, Cary Osborne of Dodger Insider reports.
Kolarek was very effective for the Dodgers in 2019 after coming over from Tampa Bay in a trade deadline deal, posting a 0.77 ERA and 0.94 WHIP in 26 games. However, he hurled only 11.2 innings over those 26 appearances as a majority of his outings covered one or two batters. His best work came against left-handed hitters -- the southpaw allowed only three earned runs over 29.2 innings against lefties with the Rays and Dodgers versus 17 earned runs over 25.1 innings against righties -- but the league's new three-batter minimum rule will challenge Kolarek's usage as a left-handed specialist. As it stands, he is not guaranteed a spot on the Opening Day roster after struggling in Cactus League action this spring, allowing eight earned runs and 10 hits over 4.2 frames.