MLB Playoffs Shock: Tanner Scott’s Sudden Exit Sparks Bullpen Crisis for Dodgers

The Los Angeles Dodgers are heading into Game 4 against the Philadelphia Phillies with a noticeable hole in their bullpen, as Tanner Scott, the team’s erstwhile closer, has been taken off the active roster. Manager Dave Roberts revealed that Scott underwent an urgent abscess removal procedure on his lower body late Wednesday, a situation serious enough to bench him but with a glimmer of hope for a World Series comeback. This unexpected setback means left-hander Justin Wrobleski will step in, while Scott’s chances of pitching in the NLCS are now dashed if the Dodgers clinch the series soon. It’s been a frustrating season for Scott, whose hefty contract and high expectations haven’t translated into consistent performance, leaving the Dodgers scraping for reliable relief options. The bullpen’s leaky nature has only deepened in recent weeks, spotlighting rookie Roki Sasaki as a rare spark amid instability — and casting a long shadow on the Dodgers’ playoff aspirations. LEARN MORE

LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles Dodgers bullpen will be down another arm entering Game 4 against the Philadelphia Phillies, as former closer Tanner Scott was removed from the active roster.

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters Scott had undergone an abscess excision somewhere on his lower body on Wednesday night, describing it as urgent matter but not ruling out a return should the Dodgers reach the World Series.

“As I understand it, it was an abscess excision, some type of lower-body minor procedure,” Roberts said. “I don’t know a whole lot about it, to be quite honest with you, but I do know he’s recovering well and it took place last night.

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Left-hander Justin Wrobleski will replace Scott on the active roster. MLB rules mean Scott will now be ineligible for the NLCS if the Dodgers are able to put the Phillies away in either of the next two games.

Roberts had previously alluded to Scott having an issue after Wednesday’s Game 3 loss, saying it was something “personal” and that the southpaw was “completely unavailable.”

If this is the end of Scott’s season, 2025 will be cemented as a profoundly disappointing first year with the Dodgers for him. Scott was the team’s second-most expensive addition last offseason at four years and $72 million, money spent with the hope that he could be a shutdown reliever for a team already stacked in other areas.

Instead, Scott performed below replacement level in a campaign that both started and ended badly. He hit the injured list in July with elbow inflammation and posted a 6.92 ERA in the second half, with the Dodgers continuing to use him in save situations.

Clearly, the club believed Scott’s stuff would eventually come around and he would become the pitcher that had Shohei Ohtani in knots during last year’s postseason, when he was with the San Diego Padres. That time never came, and he went completely unused in the Dodgers’ first five games of the 2025 playoffs.

Barring some sort of salary dump, Scott will be back for the Dodgers next year, though, with plenty to work on.

PHOENIX, ARIZONA - SEPTEMBER 23: Relief pitcher Tanner Scott #66 of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitches against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the ninth inning at Chase Field on September 23, 2025 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Diamondbacks defeated the Dodgers 5-4. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images) — Tanner Scott’s 2025 season might already be over. It was one to forget. (Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images)

(Chris Coduto via Getty Images)

Scott’s struggles have been a major part of the Dodger bullpen’s woes over the past month, which the team seems no closer to fixing. The one bright side is the emergence of previously hyped rookie Roki Sasaki as a late-inning arm, but nearly every other reliever used this postseason has seen at least one ugly inning already.

That continued in Game 3, when Clayton Kershaw — coming out of the bullpen in his final MLB postseason — allowed a 3-1 lead to balloon into 8-1, which could have a significant repercussion for the Dodgers in Game 4.