Dodgers Want to Start Dynasty, Says Tommy Edman
After their second World Series championship in five years, the Los Angeles Dodgers appear to be far from done.
Dodgers infielder Tommy Edman was one of the many bright spots during the 2024 campaign but turned it on in the postseason, batting .328/.354/.508 with two home runs and 13 RBIs. A particularly clutch NLCS earned him MVP honors for that series, as well as a five-year, $74 million contract extension in November.
Edman confidently told MLB Network Radio that his team is “hoping to start the dynasty,” and added, “we’re going for that back-to-back title.”
The confidence in a repeat championship doesn’t stop with the players. Manager Dave Roberts talked about other historic Los Angeles sports dynasties in relation to this upcoming year.
“I really feel that the carrot, the incentive for our club, in 2025, is now you’re getting into legacy territory,” Roberts said in a SiriusXM Town Hall interview with actor Bryan Cranston in December. “I talked to Magic about legacy and [former Lakers coach] Pat Riley and what he instilled in those guys, the mindset. That’s something I’m going to try to [instill] in our guys because now we’re trying to do something that will last forever.”
Building a team that is made to last is exactly what the front office has been doing. Their star-studded core of Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Will Smith, Edman, and now Teoscar Hernández are all signed with the team until at least 2027.
But it doesn’t stop with the bats.
On the pitching side of the roster, Los Angeles bolstered its rotation acquiring Cy Young award winner Blake Snell in November. Also on the mound in 2025 will be Ohtani, making his pitching debut for the Dodgers; Tyler Glasnow, who will be back from the IL to start the campaign; and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, last year’s ace. All four pitchers are signed through at least 2027.
The Dodgers have also met with Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki and are among at least six teams in the running to sign the 23-year-old superstar. Sasaki has a 2.10 ERA in Nippon Professional Baseball over his past four seasons with 505 strikeouts to only 88 walks. Signing him would be another considerable addition to an already lethal rotation.
There has not been a repeat champion in MLB in 24 years. The New York Yankees, who the Dodgers defeated this past October, won three in a row from 1998-00.
Although the weight of a potential back-to-back run is enormous — especially given recent history — the Dodgers have many reasons to believe they will finally get it done.
Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
Keke is no longer necessary to sign. He always reminded me a little like Machado who we declined to re-sign because he chose when to give 100% effort. I’m not accusing Keke of being lazy, only inconsistent. He only seems to give that extra effort in the post seasons which is unacceptable in my view.