The Dodgers open spring training Thursday in Arizona

Rome fell. The Titanic sank. Mike Tyson was knocked out by Buster Douglas.

Things happen, and they can happen to anyone and anything.

Including the Dodgers.

I wouldn’t bet on the Dodgers heading into a potential three-peat season, but the elements of disaster are there. Their initial circulation is fragile. Their list is getting old. Position player depth isn’t what it used to be.

The two-time defending World Series champions can beat this, and they know it.

“We are aware that there is a lot of work to be done,” said manager Dave Roberts.

Any nightmare season will start with a throw.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Blake Snell, Shohei Ohtani and Tyler Glasnow were healthy in the World Series, but the reality was that it was one of the few times a change-up wasn’t sidelined by injury.

Snell was out for four months with a shoulder problem. Ohtani didn’t make his debut until mid-June because he was coming back from his second Tommy John procedure. Glasnow missed 2 ½ months with shoulder inflammation.

The only member of their rotation who made each of his starts was Yamamoto.

The lanky right-hander carried a heavy workload in the postseason.

He played two complete games. He pitched the final 2 ⅔ innings in Game 7 of the World Series, just one day after starting six innings. The performance made it seem like a given that Yamamoto could make it through another regular season, but the reality is that he has a checkered medical history.

In 2024, his first season in the majors, Yamamoto was sidelined for nearly three months due to shoulder problems.

Download the California Post App, follow us on social media, and sign up for our newsletters

Problems have arisen as Snell said he will rebuild his arm a little this spring so that the shoulder doesn’t hurt him like it did last year. Snell is right to take his time. The Dodgers need him in October. But his missing time in the regular season could affect the team, as an unhealthy rotation can have big consequences.

Pitchers are injured as a result of the team’s coverage starting with inexperienced arms that cannot be relied upon to pitch between games. The barn is forced to pick up the butt, that happened last year. The Dodgers topped the innings pitched by their relievers.

Tired breakers quickly become ineffective buffers.

Example: Tanner Scott.

The $72-million left-hander pitched in 21 of the Dodgers’ first 46 games last season. He had a 1.74 earned run average up to that point. That number ballooned to 6.44 over the remainder of the regular season.

The Dodger’s bullpen’s earned run average was 10th-best in baseball, which was indicative of another problem.

With the postseason in mind, the Dodgers have assembled a group of hard-throwing pitchers who have missed at-bats. While pitchers like that can empty the tank every day during a three- or four-week playoff run, doing so during the six-month regular season is difficult.

Maybe throw in a low-octane arm that can pitch more innings on a regular basis?

The organization has won three championships in the last six years, and this period has been marked by a subtle change in the way it builds its teams.

An office that once valued quantity over quality is now looking for quality over quantity.

Andrew Friedman’s previous teams consisted of several platoons.

Now? The batting order may change depending on whether the opposition is right-handed or left-handed, but six or seven of their All-Star caliber players will be in the lineup every day.

The difference in power between starters and reserves has increased. Their World Series trophies show that this is the way to go, but this type of roster is in serious danger of not being consistent in the regular season.

Regular season problems can lead to postseason concerns.

The Dodgers won the National League West, but their 93 wins were only third in the league. Because they failed to get the top two seeds in the NL, they did not have a bye in the first round and had to play a best-of-three series in the wild card round. The Dodgers destroyed the Cincinnati Reds last year, but what would happen this year if they faced a team with two hot pitchers?

Their season could be over in an instant.

But the Dodgers’ biggest concern should be age. Freddie Freeman is 36 years old. Max Muncy is 35, while Mookie Betts and Teoscar Hernandez are 33.

While Betts established himself as one of the best defensive shortstops in the NL last year, he had the worst season of his career. Durability has become an issue for both Muncy and Hernandez.

“There should be some adjustment in the way they prepare and the way they are treated,” Roberts agreed.

The Dodgers still have three All-Stars in the prime of their careers in Ohtani, Kyle Tucker and Will Smith. They should be able to withstand any decline caused by the age of their veterans.

The guess here is that the Titanic will not sink.

But it can be.