LOS ANGELES — The champagne has dried and the confetti has been swept away, but Brandon Gomes is already back in work mode. The Dodgers’ executive VP and general manager sat down with Brian Kenny on MLB Network this week to talk about what he learned from another October run and where the club goes from here. Calm as ever, he kept bringing the focus back to the players in the room and the work they do from the first day of spring. He also gave a pretty strong hint that the Dodgers are not planning to take their foot off the gas this winter.
Asked what this postseason run taught him about what wins in October, Gomes went straight to the basics. “Turns out it’s helpful to play well in the playoffs. That’s what helps you win,” he said, deadpan. Then he laid out how different the last two years have been. “We’ve played really good baseball in the postseason. We’ve done it two very different ways. In ’24 we were incredibly bullpen heavy and in ’25 very starting pitcher heavy.” For him, the common thread is execution and belief. “A lot of it comes down to performing well in big spots,” he said. “Having a group of guys that really believe in each other and rise to the occasion in big moments. You’ve got to have your guys play well and our group was a special group. The core group’s incredible and that’s what they do in everything they do starting from day one of spring training. We’ve played really quality baseball over the last two years and also caught some breaks, which is helpful.”
Kenny brought up Joel Sherman’s comparison of the Dodgers to the late-90s Yankees, teams that never seemed to panic when they were behind. Gomes did not shy away from that idea. “Yeah, absolutely. I think you saw the resiliency of the team,” he said. “No matter what the score is in the game or in the series, there’s a one-pitch-at-a-time mentality. We’ve been here before. We’ve felt the highs, we’ve felt the lows, and we just keep on grinding.” He likes the steady build of it. “If you keep doing that and you kind of stack pitch by pitch, good things will happen ultimately.”
Of course, Gomes is not watching those pitches from the dugout. He is riding every one of them from the suite. Kenny asked what that feels like, especially in a postseason that included an 18-inning epic and a wild Game 7. Gomes picked one play that Dodgers fans will not forget. “My son was sitting on my lap,” he said, talking about Andy Pages’ leaping catch over Kiké Hernández in the ninth inning of Game 7. “I think I picked him up with one hand, not really noticing that I did that, and our whole group just completely erupted when Andy went and got that ball.” He made sure to tip his cap to Toronto too. “There were so many incredible moments throughout that series and then Game 7 was just a whole other level. The Blue Jays played incredible baseball and we’re very fortunate to be on the winning side of that series.”
He admitted that watching as a GM is its own kind of grind. “It’s high adrenaline, high stress, very dialed into every pitch. Certainly some white-knuckle moments,” Gomes said. “You can’t go out and affect the game, but everybody that does what we do pours so much time and energy into putting the team together. It’s a ton of fun and it’s a ton of stress and anxiety, but the highs and lows and having those types of stakes is a beautiful thing.”
Kenny tried to get him to say the word everyone else is using. Dynasty. Gomes was not biting. “I don’t know. That’s for other people to decide,” he said. “All we’re worried about is each and every year going out and putting the best possible team we can out there.” He gave credit straight back to the stars who have carried this run. “We have a ton of fantastic superstars on our team that are egoless and solely focused on winning,” he said. “That’s what we’re most excited about, to continue to build around that group and try to win as many championships as possible.”
The conversation then turned to how this particular pitching path can carry forward. Most of the staff came into October under 100 innings. Gomes said that was not some secret master plan. “I’m not sure it’s anything by design,” he said. “There are just different paths to go about it. Obviously you would love guys to run wire to wire and be just as strong at the end as they were at the beginning, like Yama was.” Each year, he said, tells its own story. “Each year poses its own challenges, whether it’s injuries or different types of performance variation. What you have to do is your best to build out a well-rounded roster with a group of guys that has a strong clubhouse culture. Doc and our staff do a great job keeping the guys motivated and dialed in and prepared. Each year kind of plays out as it does and you continue to troubleshoot and build a team that can handle different challenges along the way.”
Not surprisingly, Yoshinobu Yamamoto came up next. Kenny pointed out that you can make a case they do not win either title without him. Gomes did not disagree. “Performance-wise he’s been outstanding,” he said. “What we saw last year, once he got settled in and came back from injury and each time out in the postseason getting better and better, this year was just incredibly impressive.” What really struck the front office was the complete package. “You just don’t see that combination of stuff and execution,” Gomes said. “Really diving into some of the game-planning components and how to prepare each game and then just an absolute killer mentality.” He put Yamamoto’s October in historic terms. “We talk about Sho’s three-homer game and ten punchouts,” he said. “I think what Yama did, pitching in six and seven and having the same stuff that he did in six and actually getting the most outs of any of our starters that game, you put it up there with things we may never see again.”
Dodger fans also perked up when Kenny mentioned the number on the screen: roughly 71 million dollars coming off the books. Gomes did not promise any spending spree, but he did not sound like a man tightening the belt either. “I don’t think it’s any different than other years,” he said. “We’re fortunate with how aggressive we’ve been the last few offseasons to have a really high floor. We can look at free agency and trade scenarios on how to fill the different areas to continue to make us as good as we possibly can to win another World Series this year.” Ownership, he said, is not going to stand in the way. “Ownership has been nothing but supportive along the way,” Gomes said. “We don’t expect anything different on that front as far as we’re going to go out and put together the best possible team we can, keeping in mind the goal is to win this year but also to make sure that we continue to be as good as we possibly can for as long as we can.”
Kenny also circled back to last year’s deadline, when the Dodgers loaded up on relief arms that did not end up playing big roles in October. Gomes still likes the idea of getting ahead of bullpen needs. “What we did last year was to try to put ourselves in position come trade deadline not having to go into that market,” he said. “I don’t think that mentality will be any different.” The key, he said, is understanding how fast depth can disappear. “We’re taking a good hard look at our pitching depth, which right now is something that is really strong in our system. Obviously that’s a fleeting thing and pitching depth can go quickly as we’ve seen in the past.” For now, the plan is to stay ready and be selective. “We’ll continue to look at how to supplement and make sure we’re prepared for a lot of different scenarios,” Gomes said. “When we feel like there’s an opportunity to add and really move the needle as far as championship odds, we’ll do it. If not, that’s okay. We have a really strong group as is and we can let some of these guys go out there and get some opportunity.”
Two titles in a row, three in six years, and a front office that sounds like it is just getting started. Gomes did not sit there and declare a dynasty. He did something much more familiar to Dodger fans. He talked about the next roster, the next challenge, and the next chance to put another World Series team on the field.
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