The postseason is approaching fast, and it’s time to nail down the Dodgers roster for the NLDS. Here’s some of our staff predictions for who we think is going to make the Dodgers 25-man roster for the first round.

Note this is for the NLDS, as things may change depending on performance, and if Alex Verdugo can return from injury by the NLCS, nonetheless, here we go:

The differences in our selections are in bold.

David Rosenthal (@_therealdrose)

I included only three starters because it’s all but been determined the team will go with a bullpen game strategy instead of using a fourth starter. I truly wrestled with the final bullpen spot going to Dustin May over Caleb Ferguson and Casey Sadler.

Personally, I would choose May over Garcia due to his ability to pitch more than one inning paired with his overall stuff and recent success pitching in relief (last 4 games: 6IP, 0R, 0ER, 8K, 1BB) — however, in part due to May’s lack of experience, I think the Dodgers very well could end up giving the nod to Yimi Garcia, despite the glaring amount of home runs he’s allowed this season. When he’s not giving up home runs, he’s getting outs, and if he’s kept on an extremely short leash and used in delicate situations, I believe he CAN (not will) be effective. 

Kevin Klein (@Klein25)

C: Austin Barnes, Russell Martin

INF: Max Muncy, David Freese, Gavin Lux, Enrique Hernandez, Corey Seager, Justin Turner

OF: Cody Bellinger, AJ Pollock, Joc Pederson, Chris Taylor, Matt Beaty

SP: Clayton Kershaw, Hyun-Jin Ryu, Walker Buehler

RP: Kenley Jansen, Joe Kelly, Pedro Baez, Kenta Maeda, Julio Urias, Adam Kolarek, Ross Stripling, Tony Gonsolin, Yimi Garcia

There’s one name missing that probably sticks out and that’s Will Smith. After a hot start, The Fresh Prince has become stale. He’s 1 for his last 23 (.043). Hitting .196 over his last 30 games with a 34% strikeout rate. If he’s going to hit the same or worse as the other 2 guys then give me the veteran Austin Barnes who filled in when Grandal was useless and caught back to back World Series. The starters have better numbers when not throwing to Smith, so it’s time to do what’s best for winning this season. Ryu 1.60 ERA with Martin, 5.81 ERA with Smith. Kershaw 3.03 ERA with Barnes, 3.35 ERA with Smith. Buehler 2.41 ERA with Barnes, 3.21 ERA with Smith

Ian Nielson (@Ianenielson)