Dodgers News: Clayton Kershaw Believes in ‘Trust in Friedman’ Mantra

It’s been a slow offseason for the Dodgers, especially compared to the rest of the league. Star players have been getting record contracts left and right, and L.A. has mostly sat quietly, picking off a guy here and a guy there but never really wading into the deep waters.

On MLB Network on Monday, Los Angeles pitcher Clayton Kershaw talked about how president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman works to put together a team and acknowledged that while it can be frustrating at times, the results are generally pretty good.

“I want Andrew to get every single good player out there, obviously, but that’s just not how it works. I think if I’ve learned anything in my time with Andrew, it’s you have to trust that he knows what he’s doing.”

The Dodgers stuck to their guns in the Bryce Harper negotiations in 2018-19, and that discipline put them in a position to be able to acquire Mookie Betts a year later, which led directly to a World Series championship. Not every move pays off with a title immediately — the Freddie Freeman signing help L.A. set a franchise record for wins in the regular season, but the team hit a terrible slump at the worst possible time and flamed out in the NLDS — but Friedman has a solid track record of putting together outstanding teams.

That will remain true in 2023. While the Dodgers have been frustratingly quiet this offseason, they have a team that is still likely to be the favorites to win the NL West next year even if they don’t do anything else. And, of course, we have to note that it’s still mid-December. The Betts and Freeman moves still seemed like pipe dreams at this point in their respective offseasons. There’s still plenty of time for Friedman to finish building a title contender.

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