Cody Snavely
It is officially that time of year when the Major League Baseball offseason is set to take off. All thirty teams and their key front office officials will gather in Dallas, Texas, from December 8th to the 12th for the annual Winter Meetings.
With multiple key free agents and trade chips still on the market, it is only logical to hear a lot of chatter and potentially some movement as teams look to take yet another step for their 2025 roster. As for the Los Angeles Dodgers, they look to fill in whatever holes or questions remain as they look to be the first team to repeat since the 1998-2000 New York Yankees, who won three World Series championships in a row.
That said, what are the Dodgers’ actual needs, and what potential wants could set this roster apart?
Needs
Starting Pitching Depth:
One of the first issues the Los Angeles Dodgers want to address is their pitching depth, specifically in the starting rotation.
Despite winning the 2024 World Series with just three healthy starters, Andrew Friedman and Co. would like to have a more solidified rotation of starters heading into October this upcoming season.
Gone are the days of a workhorse starter going over two hundred innings, and the Dodgers know this. To compensate for this deficiency, they plan to use a six-man rotation.
Currently, the Dodgers have multiple starters coming back from long-term injuries, such as righties Tyler Glasnow, Dustin May, and Tony Gonsolin. However, with this trio’s injury history, it makes sense for the Dodgers to slow play them for much of the regular season.
The team still expects veteran lefty Clayton Kershaw to re-sign eventually, but even when he does, he’ll be out for most of the first half as the 36-year-old rehabs from offseason toe and knee surgery.
Young starters Gavin Stone and River Ryan will miss all of the 2025 season due to their surgeries, and even if Emmet Sheehan makes his return to the mound, who knows how he’ll look after his first career Tommy John Surgery.
Then you have two-way star Shohei Ohtani, who is coming back from his second career Tommy John Surgery, along with offseason labrum surgery, which by all accounts will delay his start on the mound.
The Dodgers made the first significant impact signing the winter when they locked up two-time Cy Young Award Winner Blake Snell to a five-year, $182 million deal, but it is not enough.
Currently, the Dodgers rotation on FanGraphs has six arms, including Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow, Shohei Ohtani, Dustin May, and Tony Gonsolin.
Currently, multiple starters are still on the market via trade and free agency. While Corbin Burnes or Max Fried make sense, the Dodgers should go to the short-term route, such as a reunion with Walker Buehler or a potential trade with the St. Louis Cardinals for Sonny Gray.
Bench Depth:
One area that has been lackluster for most of the 2020s has been the Dodgers’ bench depth during the regular season.
Despite being a postseason hero, fan-favorite Enrique Hernandez was a below-league-average player for the first half of the season until he regained his sight after getting prescription eyeglasses.
Chris Taylor was one of the worst players in the league this past season with a .202/.298/.300 slash line and .598 OPS in 213 at-bats while taking a substantial defensive dip.
While the team did get contributions from Andy Pages, his inability to hit right-handed pitchers, as shown by his 82 wRC+ and Austin Barnes, is simply providing the Dodgers with the typical defensive first mindset as a backup catcher.
While the Dodgers do have top prospect Dalton Rushing knocking on the door, it remains to be seen where they see the young slugger will play, as he split time between catcher and left field last season in Triple-A.
Currently, the Dodgers bench is on the thin side, only listing four players: Miguel Rojas, Chris Taylor, Austin Barnes, and Ryan Ward, who has yet to make his Major League debut.
The simple solution is to re-sign Enrique Hernandez since he gives you the ability to play all over the diamond, but we could see the Dodgers active in the trade market.
David Vassegh also hinted that the Dodgers are looking to acquire a left-handed hitting outfielder, and fans have looked at Lars Nootbaar of the St. Louis Cardinals. Still, they could also see if James Outman has made any improvements after his down 2024 season.
Solidify the Backend of the Bullpen:
If there is one thing that changes yearly, it is a team’s bullpen, and the Dodgers are no exception to that rule.
Entering the offseason, the Dodgers bullpen remains essentially unchanged from last year. However, one area that needs to be solidified is the backend, specifically who will be the “closer.”
The Dodgers have not had a bonified closer in the 9th inning since Kenley Jansen was on the team in 2021. So far, it has been primarily Evan Phillips getting the bulk of the saves, but at the end of the season, the team removed him from that role due to his season struggles.
Perhaps the biggest free agent from the bullpen that the Dodgers must bring back is veteran right-handed pitcher Blake Treinen, who took over the “closer” role or high-leverage during the postseason.
The St. Louis Cardinals, whom I have mentioned twice so far in this article, are going to sell all their assets as they look to begin their rebuild under the new President of Baseball Operations, Chaim Bloom. Bloom has made it known that relief pitcher Ryan Helsley is available.
However, if the Dodgers want to take an internal route, someone like May or Gonsolin could shift to the bullpen as a bulk guy, which would, in turn, push the rest of the relief core down a spot.
Andrew Friedman has a reluctance to trade for relief arms and will not shell out a huge multi-year deal after a bonified closer if one is even on the market, but if the team continues to add starting pitching depth, that, in turn, will solidify the bullpen.
Wants
Dump Chris Taylor’s Contract:
If I were in Andrew Friedman’s chair, I would do my absolute best to get out of the final year of utilityman Chris Taylor’s contract.
Taylor, 34, re-signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers after the 2021 season to a four-year, $60 million contract; however, what looked like a great signing then has turned into an awful signing now.
Taylor has been a below-league-average hitter for the last three seasons, and while he could have made up for it with his defense, he has taken a dip in that regard, too.
Taylor is entering the final year of that deal and is set to earn $13 million for the 2025 season, and has a $12 million club option for the 2026 season that will most certainly be declined.
Trading Taylor not only frees up some cash, but it also creates a roster spot for a player such as Dalton Rushing or any potential free agent signing or trade for someone who can help the Dodgers, not hurt them.
The Dodgers have had a few trades over the last ten years that were seen as salary dumps, and one including Taylor would make a ton of sense.
Re-Sign Teoscar Hernández:
While the big fish in the free agent market is Juan Soto, who is projected to get a multi-year contract well over $600 million, if the Dodgers swing and miss on him, they should bring back fan favorite Teoscar Hernández.
Despite the Dodgers still reportedly being involved in the Juan Soto sweepstakes, Dodgers insider and radio talk show host David Vassegh stated that the two sides were extremely close to a deal.
Usually, Vassegh is on the money when it comes to Dodger moves due to his inside track record. With the two sides “nailing out” the final terms, let’s just get the job done this upcoming week.
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