PHOENIX — Tyler Glasnow’s Eating Challenge

If only Tyler Glasnow had the appetite, things might be different. He’s already got quite a lot going for him: towering at 6-foot-8, sporting movie-star looks, and firing fastballs in the high 90s.

The one thing he struggles with, though, is maintaining weight. To put it in perspective, he’s much taller than 5-8, 220-pound Dylan Hernandez, but the Dodgers seem to think that Glasnow’s lean physique is linked to his injury issues. So they’ve assigned him a straightforward task: “Eat more.”

“Weight comes off quick,” Glasnow explains. “If I don’t keep track and skip weighing myself for a week, I can drop 7 pounds. It’s wild.”

His ultimate goal? To put on weight. Teoscar Hernandez, for example, lost 12 pounds over the winter, mainly by managing how much he eats. Many Dodgers players, like Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Gavin Stone, gained weight and added muscle over the offseason.

Glasnow’s weight gain mission started last year after he was sidelined with shoulder inflammation in late April. “They suggested that adding a bit of fat could help my tissue recover better,” he said. “I gave it a shot and felt much better.” Now, he tips the scales at over 240 pounds, which is up from his usual competition weight of around 220. Interestingly, his body fat percentage has risen from 5% to over 9%.

“I feel fine at the lower weight,” Glasnow stated. “But I think it’s tough to survive a whole season like that. Playing with some weight feels good.”

The health-conscious Glasnow hasn’t changed his diet to include junk food, though. “I try to focus on protein, carbs, and veggies,” he mentioned.

It’s not that the food has become lesser quality; he just has to eat more often than before. “I used to wait until I got to the field to eat,” he reflected. “I’d basically fast until night, only having breakfast and a midnight snack, which means about four meals daily now.”

Despite his efforts, Glasnow has never pitched more than 134 innings in a season, and last year he managed 90 1/3 innings. His hope is that this new weight will help him remain healthy throughout the year. Past injuries have kept him from being a serious contender for major accolades, but he has posted an impressive 3.17 ERA over the last seven seasons. If he can steer clear of the injured list this year, he could even chase the Cy Young Award—a thought that has certainly crossed his mind.

“I think it’s on the minds of all starting pitchers,” he admitted. “I need to focus on starting, and I don’t want it to overshadow my season, but yeah, it’s there.”

Manager Dave Roberts seems optimistic about Glasnow’s potential. “I think he’s made significant strides, and he should leverage his talent to be among the best in the National League,” he expressed. Roberts noted Glasnow’s determination during the postseason, where the Dodgers won all three of his starts and he posted a 1.65 ERA. He also showed up as a reliever in three games, pitching 2 1/3 innings in the World Series.

“I felt Tyler improved more than anyone last year,” Roberts observed. “What stands out is how he embraced pitching out of the bullpen for the first time. It shows his maturity and the willingness to risk failure, and he handled it exceptionally.” He believes this experience will serve as a springboard for Glasnow moving forward.

Glasnow’s playoff history has been hit-or-miss; he had a 5.72 ERA in ten postseason starts with the Rays and faced an elbow injury that prevented him from pitching in his Dodgers’ first postseason appearance last year.

Now, he feels he’s at a pivotal moment in his career, performing for the Dodgers while being well-established and in the second year of a hefty contract.

“Eventually, I think winning becomes the only thing that matters,” he said, “and personal stats take a back seat.” His mindset this time around is notably different.

“I used to find the postseason more nerve-wracking when I was younger,” Glasnow remarked. “But I felt less anxious last year—I was just excited and eager to pitch.”

He’s clearly working on an appetite for not just pitching but also for food. He hopes that these additional meals will lead to more starts this season.