Dodgers’ Evan Phillips left off World Series roster as Yankees also make changes before Fall Classic

The New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers announced their World Series rosters just ahead of Friday night’s Game 1 at Dodger Stadium. 

Most notably, the Dodgers made notable changes to the 26-player roster they had in place for their NLCS triumph over the Mets. Lefty reliever Alex Vesia and right-hander Brusdar Graterol have been added to the roster after recovering from their respective injuries. To make room, right-handed reliever Evan Phillips and outfielder Kevin Kiermaier have been left off. Phillips had been expected to be a key right-handed setup man for the Dodgers in this series — possibly used to counter Aaron Judge in the late innings — but he suffered an arm injury during the deciding Game 6 of the NLCS. Dodgers executive Andrew Friedman told reporters Friday that because Phillips had a pre-existing injury, they would not have been able to replace him on the roster mid-series if he became unable to play. Also, infielder Miguel Rojas is back for the Dodgers after missing the NLCS with an adductor injury. 

Overall, the Dodgers are going with an even split for the World Series, 13 pitchers and 13 position players. Here’s the full roster: 

Pitchers (13): Walker Buehler, Jack Flaherty, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Anthony Banda, Ryan Brasier, Ben Casparius, Brusdar Graterol, Alex Vesia, Blake Treinen, Michael Kopech, Daniel Hudson, Brent Honeywell, Landon Knack

Catchers (2): Will Smith, Austin Barnes

Infielders (4): Freddie Freeman, Gavin Lux, Max Muncy, Tommy Edman, Miguel Rojas

Outfielders (2): Teoscar Hernández, Andy Pages

Outfielders/infielders (4): Mookie Betts, Tommy Edman, Enrique Hernández, Chris Taylor

Designated hitter (1): Shohei Ohtani

On the Yankees’ side of things, infielder Jon Berti has been left off the roster, and left-hander Nestor Cortes has been added. Cortes has not pitched in a game since Sept. 18 because of elbow issues. Berti, meanwhile, suffered a hip flexor strain while running the bases during ALCS Game 4.

Like the Dodgers, the Yankees are going with a 13-13 split between pitchers and hitters. Here’s their World Series roster: 

Pitchers (13): Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón, Clarke Schmidt, Luis Gil, Nestor Cortes, Jake Cousins, Tim Hill, Clay Holmes, Tommy Kahnle, Mark Leiter Jr., Tim Mayza, Marcus Stroman, Luke Weaver

Catchers (2): Austin Wells, Jose Trevino

Infielders (5): Anthony Rizzo, Gleyber Torres, Anthony Volpe, Oswaldo Cabrera, Jazz Chisholm Jr. 

Outfielders (5): Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, Alex Verdugo, Trent Grisham, Jasson Domínguez

Designated hitter (1): Giancarlo Stanton