Dodgers News: Columnist Suggests Andrew Friedman Has Lost His Way
Analytical baseball as the new normal in MLB can be attributed in part to Andrew Friedman’s tactics in LA’s front office.
The Dodgers executive joined the front office in 2015 and the cutting-edge technology he’s implemented from his time in Tampa Bay catapulted the organization as the most consistent winner in the sport.
However, those results came mainly in the regular season and another early postseason exit in 2023 have several around the sport questioning if Friedman’s lost his touch from his previously renowned strategies. Here’s what LA Times columnist Dylan Hernandez had to say (you can read the full column by clicking here).
The once cutting-edge baseball operations department has become a caricature of itself, now paralyzed by its insistence on winning every deal. Friedman once said that taking a rational approach with every free agent will cause a team finishing third in the bidding each time, but he has nonetheless remained conservative in his pursuit of high-end players.
The Dodgers won’t do anything significant unless a bargain is involved.Instead of using their financial resources to dictate the free-agent and trade markets, the Dodgers have allowed the markets to dictate what they can and can’t do. That’s why they didn’t acquire any impact players last winter.
via Dylan Hernandez, LA Times
For as much talent that’s been on LA’s roster throughout this past decade of contention, they haven’t won a full season World Series since 1988.
The 2020 seasno marked a title in the pandemic-shortened year but the circumstances around that year are still debated around LA and the league as a whole.
The 2016 season marked a return to the NLCS for the franchise in Dave Roberts’ first season as manager but the team fell in six after Clayton Kershaw failed to string two good starts together.
Painful exits in 2017 and 2018 came on the biggest stage as Roberts became the first manager to lose back to back World Series since Ron Washington of the Rangers in 2010 and 2011.
The 2019 season might have been the Dodgers’ best chance at revenge against the Houston Astros but a late game collapse in the NLDS sent LA home early once again.
The Nationals instead lifted the trophy that season but the Dodgers benefitted from the D.C team in their next run.
The 2021 season saw Friedman go all in for Max Scherzer and Trea Turner but the team fell in the NLCS thanks to several injuries against the eventual World Series winner Atlanta.
None of those losses compare to the failure of recent seasons as the team won 100 regular season games in both seasons for a first round bye.
That time off didn’t matter in both seasons as LA fell to divisional opponents in back-to-back years, last year to San Diego and this year to the eventual NL pennant winning Diamondbacks.
Patience has run thin with Friedman’s regime and this offseason will be vital for the direction of the Boys in Blue as a whole.
Photo Credit: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
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Since 2015, the Dodgers won the following number of regular season games: 2105 92, 2016 91, 2017 104, 2018 92, 2019 106, 2020 World Series win, 2021 106, 2022 111, 2023 100. Can any team come close to this record during this time span? [Maybe the Astros in the last 6 years, not for this 9-year period.] And how many World Series repeat champions have there been? 2015 Royals, 2016 Cubs, 2017 Astros, 2018 Red Sox, 2019 Nationals, 2020 Dodgers, 23021 Braves 2022 Phillies, 2023 Rangers or Diamondbacks. As for teams with equivalent resources, The Yankees and the Mets, where are they? OF the 29 other teams, how many would have traded their record over the last 9 seasons for the Dodgers’ record? All 29? 28 except the Astros? Where are the AJ Preller Padres? Three teams in the 2023 playoffs won 100+ games. One team won 99. None are in the World Series. There is a certain element of randomness and luck to success in the playoff [injuries to pitchers, slumps, hot streaks for hitters] shown by the fact that no one has repeated in over a decade, no one has won twice in the last decade. Dodger fans have had it pretty good, compared to fans of the 29 other teams. Angels fans? Yes, they need to get a couple of outstanding starting pitchers.
Winning 100+ games means nothing if they’re not able to close the deal with a championship.
Roberts got to go as well as: Taylor, Rojas, Barnes, Rosario, Hayward and Lynn.
Got to keep: JD Martinez
If Robert’s record isn’t good enough for you, then there isn’t a single other person good enough for you, either available or unavailable. Roger explains it exactly right. We’ve been treated to the best in baseball under the Friedman regime. The 162 game grind will tell you the best team, and the post season tournament is just a crapshoot. Its going to be won by a different team every year, based mostly on luck and timing, and on average, no matter what team you root for, you might get 3 world series in a lifetime, so enjoy them when they happen. But if you want to fire everybody everytime you don’t win the WS, good luck with that.
I say “Keep Hayward and maybe Taylor
So you are saying you don’t want the Dodgers to go after Shohei Ohtani? If they do they can’t resign JD. There is no place for him to play on the Dodgers. Don’t blame Roberts for the postseason failures. Blame the players who didn’t hit the ball like the rest of the year.
Pretty much any major league manager would have the same record as Roberts with the talent this team has had over the years. Roberts IS the reason for losing in the playoffs. He cannot win a short series. Heck, he wouldn’t have won in 2020 if the Tampa coach leaves Snell in the game. As for this “columnist” suggesting Friedman has lost his way; he does not understand the long game, and that’s what Friedman is playing. They needed to dump salary for this off-season. They’ve been planning on this for a few years now. It’s all about Ohtani. And possibly Snell (whom Friedman had in Tampa). Bonus: Yamamoto. The Dodgers can actually sign all three in two weeks. I wouldn’t mind seeing Heyward (RF) and Peralta (role) coming back, with DeLuca starting in LF. And, Feduccia replacing Barnes. JMO
And dammit, keep Brasier!
As John Madden said, when you replace a coach (manager), who do you get that is better? That is something you don’t know until it’s too late. A constant 100 win season and a post season birth is pretty good. Jackson is right when he stated that the post season is a crapshoot.