The Los Angeles Dodgers and Shohei Ohtani agreed to a 10-year, $700 million contract on Saturday. The agreement followed a wild day of rumors and false reports on Friday. Dodgers fans are excited for the future, but LA's front office understands there is more work to do.
The first thought of Ohtani joining the Dodgers is that LA instantly becomes the World Series favorite. However, baseball features different dynamics of a team, and Ohtani will not be pitching in 2024. So the Dodgers, who entered the offseason needing to add starting pitching, still must address that area of concern.
Los Angeles has other question marks on the roster as well. Would LA be a playoff contender as currently constructed? Yes, but winning the World Series is the goal for this ball club. And right now, even with Ohtani, making a World Series run would prove to be a challenge.
Without further ado, here are three moves the Dodgers must make after agreeing to sign Shohei Ohtani in MLB free agency.
Trade for star pitcher
Los Angeles can still certainly utilize free agency. However, they have a deep farm system with MLB ready prospects who will be valuable in potential trades.
So which star pitcher should the Dodgers trade for?
Corbin Burnes and Dylan Cease stand out. LA has been linked to both pitchers so far this offseason. Shane Bieber and Tyler Glasnow are other candidates to keep an eye on.
Burnes is arguably the best of the four pitchers. They are are all relatively close in age, while Bieber is a former AL Cy Young winner. However, Cease may hold the most value as he's the youngest of the group (27-years old) and is under contract through 2025. Burnes, Bieber, and Glasnow all have just one year of team control remaining on their contracts.
That also means Cease may cost the most prospect capital to acquire. The Dodgers are clearly going all in right now, though, something that was evidenced by their decision to give Ohtani $700 million dollars. Cease should be the top trade target this offseason.
That said, ending up with Burnes, Bieber, or Glasnow wouldn't be a bad thing by any means. In fact, it's possible the Dodgers could trade for two of these four pitchers.
Sign a corner outfielder
Cody Bellinger reunion? Probably not, but signing another outfielder will be important for the Dodgers.
James Outman is the only LA outfielder currently locked into an everyday position. Outman is expected to be the Dodgers centerfielder in 2024. Mookie Betts, meanwhile, will primarily play second base during the upcoming '24 campaign.
Chris Taylor and Jason Heyward are other outfield options. Signing at least one reliable outfielder in free agency will be pivotal for the team, however.
Teoscar Hernández, Hunter Renfroe, Tommy Pham, Wil Myers, Lourdes Gurriel Jr., Joc Pederson, and Michael Brantley are all possible free agent targets for the Dodgers. There isn't any game-changing superstar outfielders available, with the exception of Bellinger's ceiling, but signing a player like Hernandez would add stability to LA's outfield.
Can the Dodgers also sign Yoshinobu Yamamoto?
Is signing Yoshinobu Yamamoto even a possibility for the Dodgers after agreeing to such a lucrative deal with Ohtani?
Ohtani's contract reportedly includes “significant deferrals,” Jeff Passan of ESPN reports. Ohtani wanted these deferrals so the Dodgers could construct the best possible team around him.
“Shohei Ohtani's contract has significant deferrals that include most of his salary — an idea, a source said, that was Ohtani's. In deferring the money, it reduces the cost of the competitive-balance-tax hit and will allow the Dodgers to build a better team around him,” Passan wrote on X (formerly Twitter).
So this all leads back to the potential of signing Yamamoto, arguably the best remaining free agent, as well.
Yamamoto is expected to be a superstar pitcher in the big leagues. And as we've already addressed, the Dodgers need pitching help. Yamamoto would become a co-ace alongside Walker Buehler for LA.
Look for the Dodgers to at least inquire about the possibility of signing Yamamoto.
Follow Us
Subscribe