This past season, after eight consecutive division wins, and two World Series appearances, the Los Angeles Dodgers finally won the championship they have so desperately sought. With the franchise’s seventh World Series championship and the first since 1988 when they defeated the Oakland Athletics, one might expect that the team world rest on their laurels, but not these Dodgers.
Already out to a red hot 11-2 start, Los Angeles heads down to rival San Diego this weekend to try and add to their early division lead. In front of this series, Telecomasia.net asked us to briefly highlight how the team got here, what transpired in the offseason, and where we think the team is heading.
Notable Losses
In 2021 the Dodgers said goodbye to several of their veterans. Among them was Joc Pederson, who played 748 games and spent his entire career with the Dodgers. The left-handed power hitter slugged 131 home runs over 7-seasons for Los Angeles and was the fourth key Dodger free agent to sign with another organization.
Right-handed relief pitcher Pedro Báez signed with the Houston Astros, utilityman Kiké Hernández landed with the Boston Red Sox, and left-handed starting pitcher Alex Wood signed with the San Francisco Giants. The team also parted ways with relief pitchers Joe Floro, Adam Kolarek, and Jake McGee, and outfielder Terrance Gore.
Additions
This winter was very quiet at first for Andrew Friedman. By early February, the only free agent the club had signed with was Tommy Kahnle, who will likely miss a season after surgery.
But then the Dodgers dropped a real bombshell on the media, signing Trevor Bauer, the National League’s best player from last year, for three years for $102 million. That contract can’t be called cheap, but at the same time, the franchise doesn’t overload the long-term salary cap by risking the future. Yes, they’ll have to go into tax now, but it doesn’t seem like that amount would be unaffordable for Los Angeles.
The re-signing of franchise player Justin Turner for two years for $34 million pushed the club further into tax territory, beyond the second tax threshold. If the Dodgers fall below that line at the end of the season, that would mean their highest pick in the 2022 draft will be moved up to ten places, but in the short term, that doesn’t matter as Bauer and Turner are the players to help. LA will fight for the title for at least two more seasons.
The club re-signed catcher Austin Barnes for 2 years, giving him $4.3 million, and also pitcher Walker Buehler, for the same 2 years, but $8 million. Both players will have arbitration eligibility after the end of the deal.
Positional Shifts
The biggest difference between the Dodgers 2020 and the Dodgers 2021 is pitching. In the team rotation, Bauer joins Buehler, Clayton Kershaw, May, and Urias. May won the fifth starter position over veterans David Price and Tony Gonsolin.
Gavin Lux should take over for Pederson and Hernandez, and the positional flexibility of Taylor, Beaty, and Neuse will help mitigate the loss of any diamond player to injury except for catcher, where promising prospect Keibert Ruiz is waiting to play.
The departure of Baez and Floro is expected to affect the depth of the squad, and the signing of Kahnle should have helped, but the baseball player is not expected to be on the field until 2022. The return of Treinen, who was a solid backup during the playoffs, plays an important role here, and while his speed is far from ideal, his fielding percentage is still solid. Corey Knebel could also be an additional feature. Even though he missed 2019, Los Angeles managed to get him for little money, so from a financial standpoint, his contract carries a lot of weight on the payroll, but before his injury, he was giving up a 3.15 ERA/3.11 FIP over 223 innings with 57 saves.
Conclusion
According to bookmakers’ betting odds, the Dodgers remain one of the top contenders for the championship in the new season. The Los Angeles team’s upbeat start only supports those predictions. Even though the club got rid of several players at once, it cannot be said that it has weakened. Moreover, the main roster, which is already in good shape, was noticeably strengthened by the signing of Bauer. We can only hope that the newcomer adapts to his new team quickly and that there is enough roster depth to sustain a strong regular season and playoff performance.
