Dodgers are hopeful Tyler Glasnow can be an ace. But first, he’ll have to stay healthy

For a pitcher who just signed a nine-figure contract extension, who has been mentioned as one of the best natural talents in baseball, and who figures to be one of the key cogs for this season’s Dodgers team, Tyler Glasnow’s personal goals for 2024 might seem rather modest. “He’s in a good spot right now,” Roberts said after watching one of Glasnow’s first bullpens of the spring this week. “I think sometimes with medical histories, there’s usually breadcrumbs of what was going on, what happened,” Dodgers pitching coach Mark Prior said. “I think it’s probably safe to say if we didn’t feel optimistic,” Prior added, “that we wouldn’t have done it.” Glasnow also indicated he is in a better place physically than he has been in years past, noting that ever since his elbow healed, “everything was good and I feel really good right now.” Indeed, instead of a rehabilitation or recovery program this spring, the 6-foot-8 hurler has been working with Dodgers coaches to refine his mechanics and hone in on specific “feels” with his pitches — a key process for a veteran that Roberts described as “thoughtful” and “cerebral” with his delivery. While it doesn’t necessarily mean Glasnow will be asked to shoulder a greater share of the pitching workload early in the year — Roberts noted that the club remains “mindful” of the fact Glasnow hasn’t pitched a full season before — it will likely position him as the rotation’s anchor in the early going, if not its leading ace for much of the season.