The Los Angeles Dodgers retooled their roster this offseason and brought back key players to contend at a chance to become baseball’s frst back-to-back champions in a quarter-century.
As the National League pennant has been secured and the Dodgers are four wins away from their ultimate goal, it’s safe to say that president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman captained a succesful offseason of deals.
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Right off the bat, one of the biggest signings in MLB free agency this year was two-time Cy Young award winner Blake Snell. The southpaw made just two starts before shoulder complications would shut him down for four months. Upon his return, Snell was nothing short of electric, totaling a 2.35 ERA across 11 starts.
Snell has been even better in the playoffs, striking out 28 batters and allowing just five walks. Over those 21 postseason innings, his ERA is a microscopic 0.86.
A move that didn’t go great for LA was signing veteran outfielder Michael Conforto to a one-year, $17 million deal. He ended his year hitting just .199 and put up a -0.7 bWAR, both career lows. Kirby Yates signed a one-year, $13 million deal that didn’t live up to expectations, posting a 5.23 ERA this season compared to a 1.17 ERA last year,
Another move that didn’t pan out was presumed closer Tanner Scott. In response to a 1.75 ERA season in 2024, Scott not only battled through a 4.74 ERA across 61 appearances, but led MLB in blown saves with 10. His four-year, $72 million contract doesn’t appear to be the most cost-efficient for LA.
Infielder Hyeseong Kim was signed from Korea Baseball Organization (shortly before the Dodgers would part ways with Gavin Lux), and although it would take him more time in Triple-A to adjust to MLB-level pitching, Kim proved to be a productive piece and a fan favorite. Kim batted .280/.314/.385 with a .699 OPS in his 71 appearances, and although his time was brief, earned a 1.6 bWAR.
A contract that did prove to be one of the greatest value deals was inking rookie phenom Roki Sasaki to a $6.5 million signing bonus, as he was limited to each team’s international pool money due to being under 25 years old.
Sasaki had a stellar Nippon Professional Baseball career, but struggled during his first eight starts as a Dodger. After taking more than four months off dealing with a shoulder impingement, he made two regular season appearances out of the bullpen before he would take an enormous step up in October. Through eight innings of work, Sasaki has just a 1.13 ERA with three saves (the first three of his career), five games finished, and pitching a perfect eighth, ninth, and tenth inning in Game 4 of the NLDS against the Philadelphia Phillies, eventually earning a spot in the NLCS.
The Dodgers brought back Teoscar Hernández this offseason, and despite a down regular season, has already launched four home runs this postseason going into the Fall Classic. Blake Treinen was also brought back, and despite an enormous 2024, has been unrecognizable. His 7.36 ERA this postseason through seven appearances is certainly concerning.
Two more moves to bring back talent from the previous season in Kiké Hernández and Clayton Kershaw have also paid off.
The utility star is hitting .306 this postseason, and Kershaw delivered a 3.36 ERA across 112.2 regular season innings at a time when starting pitching depth was critical.
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Photo Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images
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