As recent iterations of the San Diego Padres and the New York Mets can attest, World Series titles are not won in the offseason. Spending on big splashes in December does not guarantee a team will make one in October. Such is the magic of big money in baseball, an omnipresent villain that is by no means omnipotent when the games matter most. But the Los Angeles Dodgers are testing spending’s potency anew.
No one has ever had an offseason quite like these Dodgers, who committed more than a billion dollars to two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani and fellow Japanese star Yoshinobu Yamamoto, acquired former Tampa Bay Rays ace Tyler Glasnow and gave him a nine-figure extension, then signed outfielder Teoscar Hernández to a one-year deal reportedly worth $23.5 million.
They have acquired unparalleled star power and the global attention that will accompany it, given a record contract for a starter to one who has yet to throw a pitch in MLB and added all of it to a lineup that already includes two of baseball’s biggest stars in Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman.
After a relatively quiet season, an early playoff exit and a month spent watching their far less heralded division rival charge to the World Series, the Dodgers flexed every one of their many financial and prestige muscles to reestablish themselves as the sport’s dominant force. In terms of drawing talent their way, they have certainly accomplished that. But have they done enough?
On some levels, that question seems ridiculous. The right side of Los Angeles’ infield will include Betts and Freeman. Ohtani, who underwent elbow surgery in September and is not expected to pitch this year, will serve as a potent left-handed designated hitter. Will Smith is one of the sport’s most well-rounded catchers. After piecing their rotation together down the stretch last year, the Dodgers will have Yamamoto and Glasnow to go with Walker Buehler as the righty returns from Tommy John surgery.
But while the Dodgers paid him like Gerrit Cole, Yamamoto is not exactly a known commodity. And it might be asking too much to expect Buehler, an annual Cy Young candidate before his surgery, to look like one in his first months back. Glasnow has always pitched like an ace when healthy, but he has often struggled to stay on the field. Behind those three, the Dodgers are largely relying on young starters such as Emmet Sheehan and Bobby Miller. They are better, and if Ohtani successfully returns to pitch in 2025, they will be extremely deep then, too. But Dodgers team president Andrew Friedman has watched far deeper rotations deteriorate through the rigors of a regular season before. He might need to do more.
Plus, it would not be a stretch to argue that they do not even have the best rotation in the National League. The Atlanta Braves are expecting to start the season with Spencer Strider, Max Fried, Charlie Morton and Chris Sale as their top four, a formidable combination if everyone stays healthy. Much like Los Angeles’ group, that is hardly a guarantee. Much like the Dodgers, the Braves are hoping their star-studded lineup can avenge an early postseason exit this year. And they are not the only major market teams hoping to avenge disappointing finishes by loading up this winter.
The New York Yankees acquired Juan Soto to bolster the middle of their lineup. They traded for Alex Verdugo, who should also add depth near the bottom of the order. They pursued Yamamoto, but they were forced to pivot when he chose the Dodgers instead. On Thursday night, they reportedly agreed to a two-year deal with Marcus Stroman, who slots into the middle of a rotation that includes reigning American League Cy Young Award winner Cole, bounce-back candidate Carlos Rodón and wily lefty Nestor Cortes. The Yankees might not be finished adding to that group, either. The Dodgers got the biggest names on this offseason’s market, but they are not the only recently dormant giant determined to reemerge.
Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer are scheduled to return from injury midsummer for the World Series champion Texas Rangers, who won that title without major contributions from either pitcher. That means that by late this coming season, the Rangers’ pitching staff might look even better than it did last October. They, too, have spent the past few offseasons spending like a team determined to pay its way out of any postseason uncertainties.
So for all the Dodgers have done this offseason — and to be clear, they have deserved every headline — they have not necessarily secured themselves anything. A poignant reminder of that lies 3,000 miles away in Queens, where the Mets would have the sport’s largest payroll if the season started today, according to Cot’s Baseball Contracts. The Mets are, by owner Steve Cohen’s recent standards, taking it easy this offseason. No one knows better than they do that expectations are all that spending guarantees.