If you look back at the Los Angeles Dodgers roster 2016, you’ll see a team that honestly had no business winning the National League West. On paper, it was a mess. By mid-summer, the training room at Dodger Stadium looked more like a MASH unit than a professional clubhouse. They broke the MLB record for the most players put on the disabled list in a single season. We’re talking 28 different players sidelined.
Yet, they won.
They didn't just win; they hunted down a surging San Francisco Giants team and took the division crown for the fourth straight year. Most people remember 2016 for the Cubs finally breaking their curse, but for folks in LA, that season was a wild, exhausting masterpiece of "next man up." It was Dave Roberts’ first year at the helm. He wasn't just managing a baseball team; he was managing a revolving door.
The Ace and the Absence
You can't talk about that year without starting with Clayton Kershaw. He was in the middle of a season that felt like a video game. By late June, his stats were basically fan fiction: a 1.79 ERA and a strikeout-to-walk ratio that defied physics. Then, his back gave out. A mild disc herniation shut him down for ten weeks.
Usually, when the best pitcher on the planet goes down, a team folds.
But the Los Angeles Dodgers roster 2016 found oxygen in weird places. Kenta Maeda, fresh over from Japan, became the de facto stabilizer. He wasn't Kershaw, but he was durable, which was a luxury that year. Maeda threw 175 innings, leading the team. Think about that for a second. In a season where they won 91 games, their innings leader was a rookie who most scouts thought would be a mid-rotation piece at best.
The rotation was a literal blur. Bud Norris was brought in to eat innings. Remember Scott Kazmir? He was there, grinding through 26 starts with a fading fastball. Brandon McCarthy and Brett Anderson were in and out of the lineup so fast you'd miss them if you went to get a Dodger Dog. Even Ross Stripling, then a relatively unknown rookie, had to step up and flirt with a no-hitter in his debut against the Giants.
How the Los Angeles Dodgers Roster 2016 Redefined the Bullpen
Since the starters couldn't stay on the mound, the burden fell on the "Buffaloes." That’s what they called the bullpen. Kenley Jansen was the undisputed king, putting up 47 saves and a 1.83 ERA. He was untouchable. But the real magic was the bridge to Kenley.
Joe Blanton. Yeah, that Joe Blanton.
The veteran starter reinvented himself as a high-leverage reliever and was suddenly the most reliable arm in the seventh and eighth innings. He appeared in 75 games. Then you had Pedro Báez, who moved at the speed of a tectonic plate but threw absolute gas, and Grant Dayton, a lefty who came out of nowhere to strike out everyone in sight. Dave Roberts leaned on these guys until their arms probably felt like cooked noodles. It was a modern approach before "bullpenning" was a buzzword. They led the league in strikeouts as a staff, mostly because the relievers were so dominant.
The Infield and the Rise of Seager
While the pitching was a triage unit, the infield was where the 2016 Dodgers found their soul. This was the year Corey Seager stopped being a prospect and started being a superstar. He was the unanimous NL Rookie of the Year. It wasn't even a contest.
Seager hit .308 with 26 home runs. He played shortstop with a calm that made him look like he’d been there for a decade. He was the anchor. Next to him, Justin Turner was busy solidifying his status as the best bargain in franchise history. Turner hit 27 bombs and played a vacuum-tight third base.
Then there was Chase Utley.
People forget how much "The Silver Fox" meant to this specific group. He was 37. His knees were probably screaming. But he played 138 games and brought a level of grit that the younger guys like Seager and Joc Pederson desperately needed. He was the guy who would get hit by a pitch just to get on base and then slide hard into second to break up a double play. He was the heartbeat of the Los Angeles Dodgers roster 2016.
- Adrian Gonzalez (The steady vet at 1B)
- Howie Kendrick (The ultimate utility man)
- Yasmani Grandal (27 homers from the catcher spot)
- Enrique Hernández (The super-sub who could play anywhere)
Outfield Chaos and the Yasiel Puig Saga
The outfield was... complicated.
Yasiel Puig was in the middle of a weird transition. The "Wild Horse" energy was fading into friction with the front office. At one point, he was actually sent down to Triple-A Oklahoma City. It felt like the end. But he came back in September and actually played disciplined baseball.
Meanwhile, Joc Pederson was swinging for the fences every night. He hit 25 home runs but also struck out a ton. It was the peak of the "three true outcomes" era for him. Josh Reddick came over in a mid-season trade from Oakland, and honestly, he struggled at first. He couldn't buy a hit in August. But he eventually settled in, providing some much-needed veteran depth.
And let’s not overlook Trayce Thompson. Before he got hurt (because everyone got hurt), he was a massive power threat. Andre Ethier, the longest-tenured Dodger, missed almost the entire year with a broken leg, only returning for a handful of pinch-hitting appearances in the fall. It was a patchwork unit, held together by duct tape and platoon splits.
The Defining Moment: Game 5 in D.C.
You can't talk about this roster without mentioning the NLDS against the Washington Nationals. It was the absolute distillation of the 2016 season.
Game 5. Do or die.
Dave Roberts went full "mad scientist." He used Julio Urías—a 20-year-old phenom—in relief. He brought in Kenley Jansen in the seventh inning. Jansen proceeded to throw 51 pitches, the most of his career. And then, the closer?
Clayton Kershaw.
On two days' rest, after pitching seven innings in Game 4, Kershaw came out of the bullpen to get the final two outs. It was the ultimate "all hands on deck" moment. It showed that this roster, despite its flaws and its injuries, had a collective will that was terrifying to play against. They eventually lost to the Cubs in the NLCS, but that Game 5 win in Washington remains one of the gutsiest performances in the history of the franchise.
Why This Specific Year Still Matters
Looking back, the Los Angeles Dodgers roster 2016 was the bridge to the 2020 championship era. It was the year the front office, led by Andrew Friedman, proved that depth matters more than star power during the 162-game grind. They used 55 different players that season. Fifty-five!
It taught the organization how to win ugly.
Before 2016, the Dodgers were often criticized for being "soft" or relying too much on Kershaw. This team proved they could survive without him. They learned that a scrap-heap pickup like Andrew Toles could become a postseason hero. They learned that a converted starter like Joe Blanton could be a shutdown reliever.
Actionable Insights for Fans and Historians
If you're looking to truly understand the DNA of the modern Dodgers, you have to study the 2016 season. Here is how you can dig deeper into what made that roster tick:
- Analyze the DL Stints: Check the 2016 transaction logs. It is a masterclass in roster manipulation. Seeing how they balanced the 40-man roster while losing a starter every other week is fascinating.
- Watch Corey Seager’s Rookie Highlights: It’s easy to forget how smooth he was. He didn't have the typical rookie "adjustment period." He was a finished product from day one.
- Revisit the Bullpen Usage: If you're a baseball nerd, look at the 2016 NLDS Game 5 box score. It was a precursor to how the game is managed today, with starters being used as high-leverage "firemen" in October.
- Appreciate the Role Players: Guys like Charlie Culberson, who hit the division-clinching home run in Vin Scully’s final home game. That moment alone justifies the entire season's struggle.
The 2016 Dodgers weren't the most talented team LA ever fielded, and they weren't the healthiest. But they might have been the most resilient group of guys to ever wear the home whites. They turned a season of constant medical emergencies into a celebration of depth and grit. It’s a reminder that in baseball, it’s not always about who starts on Opening Day; it’s about who’s still standing in October.