Photo: Juan Ocampo, Los Angeles Dodgers

By Cary Osborne

It was exciting news for Dodger pitching coach Rick Honeycutt, who will enter his 10th season at the helm in 2015, when the Dodgers acquired free-agent starting pitchers Brandon McCarthy and Brett Anderson. Add those two to a unit with the cornerstones of Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke and Hyun-Jin Ryu — who helped lead the Dodgers to the second best starters’ ERA in baseball in 2014 — and the Dodgers on paper are a better staff for 2015.

“To me, what makes it so exciting is you have five guys that you feel like every day when you take the mound, our team has an excellent shot to win with who’s pitching that day,” Honeycutt said.

In the following, we discuss the 2015 starting five with Honeycutt. We also asked Honeycutt how three-time Cy Young Award winner and reigning National League MVP Clayton Kershaw could improve.

“He’s going to have to hit a little better,” Honeycutt joked. “Drive in a few more runs.”

Here are his thoughts:

On Anderson and McCarthy:

“I think what I like most about both of them is the experience, but they’re strike throwers. They’re contact guys, but also have the ability to have strikeout pitches. But they pretty much induce contact and don’t walk people, which I think №1 it shows they go after people. They both have had success in the Major Leagues, so I think they both bring big additions to our staff and make us better.

“I’ve just seen (Anderson) on TV. I didn’t really get a chance to study him because I didn’t anticipate us being able to get him. I know that he’s had some unusual injuries, except for the elbow (Tommy John surgery in 2011). But when he’s been out there he’s been pretty good.

“I just think it’s the combination of adding youth to our rotation. Anderson is five or six years in and he’s still 26 years old (27 in February). To me, he’s really in the prime of his career. McCarthy’s a few years older than that, but still pretty much in the prime of his career. You’re adding depth to our starting rotation with guys age-wise who still have quite a bit in the tank. That’s what’s exciting.

“Talking to Brandon and looking at his situation, he’s always been good at times, but he’s also starting to figure himself out more and being really confident. … He’s found a new workout program that he seemed to like. He was down in Texas working with his guy and throwing with Kersh this week. So I think he’s figured out those things that make him stronger. Going through the seasons he’s had with the different injuries, physically the throwing part hasn’t been the issue. I think it’s the other things. Andrew (Friedman), in talking with him, he has a lot of ideas about pitcher injury prevention. So I’m interested in working with him and see what he feels are the things we can do better.”

“And Brett, yeah everyone wants to talk about the injuries, but a lot of them were flukish-type injuries, and there’s not a whole lot you can do about that. It can happen. But when he’s on the mound he’s extremely competitive and extremely good.”

On Kershaw:

“Pretty much the same questions were asked last year (of can he be better), and he did, even though there were less innings because of the time he was down. But that’s just Clayton. He’s going to give you everything you can ask for. To say his numbers statistically can be better is just hard to imagine that. What he’s done over the last four years is mind-blowing anyways. I don’t put any parameters or expectation on him. He expects so much of himself. You just know he’s going to be there consistent for you in every aspect. I just think he’s going to be more driven.

“He has all the awards that he won, but to him it’s still not winning and getting to the World Series and winning the World Series. And that’s going to drive him to help our team and himself to get to that point. He’s that type of individual that that’s all that’s going to satisfy him. Obviously he gets to enjoy these accolades, but he understands this game is built around winning championships. He’s driven to be the best he can be every year, and he’s proven that.”

On Ryu:

“I think Hyun-Jin is figuring it out — the workload in the states. He’s so good, but the injury part we have to continue to stay on, and I think he understands that. And he’s very honest, which you have to respect, to tell us where he’s at. Just like the playoff game last year. To sit down two-and-half, three weeks and then take the ball in the playoffs and throw that way, it just shows that talent level.

“I think he’s understanding. I think he came in last year in better shape. I see him wanting to be at that next level, where people anticipate him being in the upper echelon of guys. He’s seeing Greinke and Kershaw and seeing the way they go about their business. He understands how that takes place, to be able to do that. I think that’s what you’re going to see out of him, that he continues to improve physically, the things he does in the weight room and his work ethic that gets him to take the ball and get 200-plus innings and pitch the way he’s capable of pitching for an entire year.

On Greinke:

“Zack is a guy that has gotten more comfortable with us, has a good rapport, has a great understanding. He’s a guy who in big games pitches according to the situation.

“This guy pitched most of the year without his good curveball that he had the year before. Pretty much his fastball was good, his slider was good, his changeup was excellent. He was able to have an outstanding season and didn’t really have a good feel for his curveball for most of the year. He’s a guy who really knows how to compete at a high level, even when he doesn’t have all his pitches working.”