NL West

The Los Angeles Dodgers are reportedly interested in multiple options to improve the team's bullpen.

According to Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic, the Dodgers are eyeing free-agent reliever Tanner Scott after he made the first All-Star appearance of his career in 2024. Los Angeles is also interested in a potential trade involving Milwaukee Brewers closer Devin Williams.

The Dodgers are attempting to add "at least one more" reliever over the offseason, per Ardaya.

Los Angeles' desire to add Scott has been apparent, as the Dodgers were one of the finalists to land him ahead of the 2024 trade deadline before he was ultimately dealt to the San Diego Padres (via Jon Heyman of the New York Post).

In 72 combined games with the Padres and Miami Marlins last season, Scott compiled a 1.75 ERA while striking out 84 batters in 72 innings of work. He also looked sharp during San Diego's National League Division Series appearance, allowing zero earned runs in 4.1 postseason innings pitched.

Jim Bowden of The Athletic projected Scott to land a four-year, $60 million deal in free agency.

The Brewers declined Williams' $10.5 million club option for 2025, but he'll remain under contract with the team in his final year of arbitration (via ESPN's Jeff Passan). Still, his uncertain future in Milwaukee could result in a change of scenery.

Williams has been a consistent threat in the Brewers' bullpen since winning National League Rookie of the Year in 2020, owning a career ERA of 1.83.

Devin Williams throws it past Shohei Ohtani for the final out 🔥 pic.twitter.com/ftn6wIbZfs

— MLB (@MLB) August 15, 2024

In 22 appearances during his 2024 campaign, the 30-year-old posted a 1.25 ERA and 0.969 WHIP. Williams also averaged an incredible 15.8 strikeouts per nine innings, although his season came to an end by allowing a game-winning home run to the New York Mets in the NL Wild Card Series.

PETE ALONSO!!!!!!!!!!!!! #POSTSEASON pic.twitter.com/LzgpxTWUzN

— MLB (@MLB) October 4, 2024

The Dodgers have already been active throughout the offseason so far, signing All-Star starter Blake Snell as well as outfielder Michael Conforto.

As Los Angeles attempts to add a high-leverage reliever, Scott and Williams appear to be its top options.

The Los Angeles Dodgers put a firm ceiling on what they were prepared to give star slugger Juan Soto in free agency, according to The Athletic's Patrick Mooney, Will Sammon, Brendan Kuty and Ken Rosenthal.

The report said the Dodgers "capped their offer to Soto at $600 million."

That lines up with what Rosenthal first reported on Dec. 2. He said the World Series champions "are doing what they often do with elite free agents, hanging around the backboard, seeing if the ball somehow falls into their hands."

Soto wound up getting $765 million over 15 years from the New York Mets, per ESPN's Jeff Passan, which is the single biggest contract in sports history.

An important note on the deal is that it doesn't have any deferred money, which might have worked against Los Angeles. Deferrals are a strategy the Dodgers utilized with Shohei Ohtani last offseason and again with Blake Snell and Tommy Edman this winter.

Edman also has a weird deferral schedule, but at least the schedule is spelled out so I can calculate much more easily pic.twitter.com/3O0qAD6cCe

— Jon Becker (@jonbecker_) December 3, 2024

Blake Snell's deferred payments don't start until 2035 *and* they're split over 14 years, which is extremely annoying for a five-year contract. Will try my best to calculate here! pic.twitter.com/ocIr11qbgF

— Jon Becker (@jonbecker_) December 3, 2024

As much as Soto would've helped L.A. offensively, the franchise has already shown it can win a World Series with the roster it has. Getting Snell also addressed one of the biggest holes in the roster as well.

Soto clearly would've been more of a luxury than a necessity, so topping the Mets' bid was been a questionable investment given the scale of the transaction.

The Dodgers will presumably turn their attention toward a reunion with Teoscar Hernández. Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reported Sunday the Boston Red Sox are continuing to chase the 32-year-old outfielder, but the Boston Globe's Pete Abraham added he "has told people he would prefer to stay with the Dodgers."

With Soto now off the board, the free agents from the lower tiers such as Hernández could secure their futures in short order.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have added some depth to the outfield.

Per The Athletic's Fabian Ardaya, the Dodgers and former San Francisco Giants outfielder Michael Conforto agreed to a one-year, $17 million deal on Sunday.

The Dodgers currently have an estimated payroll of $180 million for the 2025 season, according to FanGraphs' Roster Resource. With the addition of Conforto, that number is up to $197 million.

Los Angeles' payroll also got another bump up when The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported reliever Blake Treinen agreed to a two-year, $22 million. With Treinen's deal averaging $11 million per season, the Dodgers' payroll could be at approximately $208 million.

Here's a look at how the batting order could look with Conforto on the squad.

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Potential Batting Order

1. SS Mookie Betts
2. 1B Freddie Freeman
3. DH Shohei Ohtani
4. C Will Smith
5. 3B Max Muncy
6. OF Michael Conforto
7. OF Tommy Edman
8. 2B Gavin Lux
9. OF Andy Pages

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Conforto, a nine-year veteran, just wrapped up his second year with the Giants, hitting 20 home runs, 60 RBI and notching a .237 batting average and .759 OPS. His home run and RBI numbers were his best marks since the 2019 season when he had 33 homers and 92 RBI.

Conforto, who underwent right shoulder surgery that kept him off the field the entire 2022 season, has remained mostly healthy over the past two seasons, playing 125 games in 2023 and 130 games last year. He missed a bit of time in 2024 due to a hamstring injury.

Though the Dodgers landed a talented outfielder in Conforto, they are reportedly hoping to retain one of their free-agent outfielders. After Conforto's deal was confirmed, The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported that Los Angeles is "still in on Teoscar Hernández."

Hernández, who belted 33 homers and 99 RBI with a .272 batting average last season, was a major part of the Dodgers' World Series run last year, but the 2024 season could be his only one in Los Angeles.

Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe reported on Sunday that Hernández prefers to stay with the Dodgers in 2025, "but has long been intrigued by the idea of playing at Fenway Park and he's a fan of Alex Cora."

If the Dodgers can't get Hernández back in 2025, they at least have some stability in the outfield with Conforto now on the roster.

The reigning World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers are not resting on their laurels as they gear up for the 2025 season.

Per Mark Feinsand of MLB Network, the Dodgers have agreed to a deal with outfielder Michael Conforto. Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic added that the deal is for one year and worth $17 million. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported that the Dodgers also re-signed relief pitcher Blake Treinen to a two-year, $22 million deal.

Rosenthal also noted that Los Angeles is "still in on" free-agent outfielder Teoscar Hernández despite adding Conforto.

Conforto will be remaining on the West Coast after spending the last two seasons with the San Francisco Giants. He appeared in 130 games in 2024 and posted a .237 batting average with 20 home runs and 66 RBI.

Prior to joining the Giants, Conforto spent the first seven seasons of his career with the New York Mets, who selected him with the 10th overall pick in the 2014 MLB draft.

The 31-year-old was once considered one of the top prospects in the Mets' minor league system and he made his major-league debut in July 2015. During New York's appearance in the World Series against the Kansas City Royals that year, he became the first rookie since Andruw Jones in 1996 to hit two home runs in a World Series game. He earned the lone All-Star selection of his career in 2017.

Treinen has spent five seasons with the Dodgers, though he sat out the entire 2023 campaign following shoulder surgery. In 2024, he appeared in 50 games and went 7-3 with a 1.93 ERA, a 0.94 WHIP and 56 strikeouts in 46.2 innings pitched.

Hernández signed with the Dodgers prior to the 2024 season and finished the year with a career-high 33 home runs while batting .272 and adding 99 RBI. He hit .250 with three homers and 12 RBI during the playoffs as the Dodgers went on to defeat the New York Yankees in five games to win the World Series title.

Bringing back Hernández while adding Conforto would continue a strong offseason for Los Angeles, but it will surely face competition from other teams as it tries to retain the slugger.

Los Angeles Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman is pushing back against criticism for how the team is structuring contracts to help add marquee players to an already-loaded roster.

Speaking to reporters during Blake Snell's introductory press conference, Friedman addressed the "lazy narrative" that the Dodgers are manipulating the system.

"I think the Shohei one is just jarring to people because it's so different, and I think the others just unfairly get lumped into that," Friedman said. "But I think it's kind of a lazy narrative."

The two marquee deals the Dodgers have done so far this offseason for Snell (five years, $182 million) and Tommy Edman (five years, $74 million) both included deferred money. The total deferred money in those contracts bring their total amount of deferrals over $1 billion.

the Dodgers current deferred contracts pic.twitter.com/c3ATyx2vBu

— BrooksGate (@Brooks_Gate) December 3, 2024

The bulk of that deferred money is from Shohei Ohtani, who will be paid $680 million of his $700 million contract after the deal expires following the 2033 season.

Structuring deals with deferred money serves two purposes for the Dodgers. The first is it allows them to lower the net present value of the contract, which lowers the amount that counts toward the competitive balance tax.

The Dodgers are currently more than $40 million over the 2025 CBT threshold of $241 million, with more moves likely to be made, but the amount of money they will owe for exceeding the limit isn't as much as it would be if they were paying all of the deals over the life of the contract.

The other purpose is the Dodgers can entice players to sign and not have to worry about paying California tax because they may not be living in the state by the time they receive the deferred payments.

For instance, Ohtani is going to save an estimated $98 million in state tax payments by deferring 97 percent of his salary. The move generated so much attention that California lawmakers are attempting to change the federal tax code to block such moves from happening in the future.

Even if MLB teams are upset about the Dodgers' strategy, they aren't breaking any rules. The collective bargaining agreement states there is no limit to how much deferred money teams can carry.

It's a practice that's been employed for decades. The first-known contract with deferred money was Daryl Strawberry's contract with the New York Mets that was signed in 1985.

Deferred deals were a key part of the Washington Nationals' team-building strategy in the mid-2010s and helped them field a roster that won a World Series title in 2019. Stephen Strasburg, Patrick Corbin and Max Scherzer all signed contracts with the club that included deferred money.

The Dodgers may have taken deferred money to an extreme level, but their business savvy is making it work for a team that is going to be among the favorites to win the World Series for years into the future.

Even if the Los Angeles Dodgers don't end up signing Juan Soto in free agency, they are at least doing a good job of making his other suitors aware they are actively pursuing him.

Per ESPN's Alden Gonzalez, the Dodgers have made a "highly competitive" offer to Soto even though they are "not looked upon as favorites" for the four-time All-Star.

It's unclear what constitutes a "highly competitive" offer to Soto, but it's safe to assume it probably starts at least around $600 million. Even in that case, it may not even be close to the top bids he is receiving from other teams.

Per Jon Heyman of the New York Post, there is an expectation that Soto could end up getting at least $700 million with offers from the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, New York Mets and Toronto Blue Jays all at least approaching that number.

The Dodgers were among the teams that Soto and his agent, Scott Boras, met with last month as they were going through their first round of talks with teams to determine the serious suitors.

ESPN's Jeff Passan noted last month the Dodgers wouldn't actively pursue Soto, but they would consider him if his market wasn't as strong as anticipated.

Since it seems clear that Soto's market by actually be stronger than the already-sky-high expectations when free agency began, the Dodgers would presumably have to increase their efforts to sign him if they really wanted to do so.

If the Dodgers added Soto to a lineup that already has Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman and just won a World Series, it would make all of the complaining from other owners about how much the San Diego Padres were spending a couple of years ago sound like a soft echo.

If you're the Dodgers with their financial resources and the willingness to spend them on the best players in the sport, there's no reason they shouldn't at least see if they can convince Soto to join them.

After all, Freeman is in his mid-30s and Betts is 32. They will presumably age out of their prime at some point fairly soon, so there's no harm in trying to add a 26-year-old superstar who just finished third in AL MVP voting.

Despite Jordan Montgomery's disappointing inaugural season with the Arizona Diamondbacks, a trade involving the starter may not materialize.

Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reported on Thursday that "it's no secret" the Diamondbacks are open to moving Montgomery during the offseason, but team officials are "somewhat mixed" on the idea and envision a potential bounce-back 2025 campaign.

The 31-year-old exercised his $22.5 million player option to remain with Arizona on Nov. 1.

Montgomery was a free agent for most of the offseason following a stellar run in 2023 with the Texas Rangers, signing a one-year contract worth $25 million with a player option to join the Diamondbacks in March.

Despite maintaining a 3.48 ERA to go along with 486 strikeouts in 94 starts from 2021-23, the lefty wasn't productive throughout his first year in Arizona.

He finished with a record of 8-7 as well as a 6.23 ERA in 25 appearances last season, averaging a career-low 6.4 strikeouts per nine innings. He struck out 83 total batters and allowed 44 walks.

Will with a no-doubter! pic.twitter.com/4IRJAIKNWs

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) May 2, 2024

Diamondbacks owner Ken Kendrick criticized the signing of Montgomery during an Oct. 1 radio appearance on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM.

"Looking back, in hindsight, a horrible decision to invest that money in a guy who performed as poorly as he did," Kendrick said, via the Associated Press (h/t ESPN). "It's our biggest mistake this season from a talent standpoint. And I'm the perpetrator of that."

Arizona could retain Montgomery, although Kendrick's comments make the team's stance regarding the veteran's 2024 season clear.

It shouldn't be difficult to find a trade partner for him, as Will Sammon and Patrick Mooney of The Athletic reported on Nov. 8 that the Diamondbacks have received "significant interest" from front offices searching for starting pitching options.

Montgomery isn't guaranteed to return to Arizona in 2025, but it appears that a second season with the organization is still a possibility.

The Los Angeles Dodgers might not be done adding to their star-studded rotation.

According to ESPN's Buster Olney, the "widespread industry belief" is that Japanese star pitcher Rōki Sasaki has already chosen where he wants to sign, and that his "most likely" choice is the Dodgers.

Sasaki, who turned 23 on Nov. 3, is joining the MLB for the 2025 season after a dominant four seasons with Chiba Lotte Marines in Nippon Professional Baseball. He qualifies as an international amateur free agent and can receive a limited amount of money on his first contract.

Should he choose to join the Dodgers he would pair up with countrymen Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto on what is shaping up to be one of the strongest pitching lineups in the MLB.

Sasaki posted a 2.10 ERA through 394.2 innings in four NPB seasons. He struck out 129 batters in 111 innings while finishing his final campaign with a 2.35 ERA.

His contract will be limited by MLB international signing rules to a minor league deal, plus a bonus related to the size of each team's international signing pool.

Each team's bonus pool will reset when the new signing period begins on Jan. 15. The size of the pools range from $5.15 million to $7.6 million, with the Dodgers projected to end up on the lower end of that range, per MLB.com's Jonathan Mayo.

Mayo noted teams can receive additional bonus pool money as part of a trade. That's how the Los Angeles Angels gathered enough funds to hand Ohtani his $2.3 million bonus when he joined MLB in 2017.

Should Sasaki have waited until age 25, he could have earned a deal closer to the 12 years and $325 million Yamamoto received from the Dodgers ahead of the 2024 season.

Like Ohtani, though, Sasaki could put himself on track for an even larger deal if he is able to find success against major league competition.

After the Chiba Lotte Marines announced he would be posted and could join MLB ahead of the 2025 season, the pitcher said in a statement translated by Yakyu Cosmopolitan that his goal was to "do my best to climb up from a minor league contract and become the best player in the world."

If Sasaki was available on the open market, the Dodgers would likely still be considered a favorite to sign him. The team has already committed more than $1 billion in deferred money in order to offer lucrative contracts to Ohtani, Blake Snell, Tommy Edman, Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Will Smith and Teoscar Hernandez.

Acquiring Sasaki on a relatively affordable contract would help the Dodgers add another potential star without further racking up that bill.

But other clubs could still be in the running for Sasaki, who likely won't sign with a club until the bonus pools reset in mid-January. ESPN's Jeff Passan mentioned the San Diego Padres, Texas Rangers and Chicago Cubs as potential contenders for Sasaki this winter.

Should Sasaki decide he wants to aim for the No. 1 spot in a rotation, a destination that does not already have Ohtani, Yamamoto and Snell would be a better fit.

Blake Snell didn't have to think too hard when offered the chance to sign with the Los Angeles Dodgers this offseason.

"It was really easy, just because me and [partner] Haeley wanted to live here," he told reporters. "It's something we've been talking about for a while. And when you look at the team, you look at what they've built, what they're doing, it's just something you want to be a part of. Look at the first three hitters in the lineup. It's tough to go against. So to be on the other side and know they're going to be hitting for me, it's pretty exciting."

Snell added: "Being in L.A., the pressure is always on. I like that. Living here, it's pretty amazing, the opportunities. But being able to pitch in a packed stadium, you know, you make moments for people, and this is where you want to play. I don't think there's a better situation that you could be in than being right here."

It probably didn't hurt that the Dodgers offered him a five-year, $182 million contract, which included a $52 million signing bonus and $66 million deferred between 2035-46, which will help the team circumvent the luxury tax threshold as it continues to stockpile stars.

"I can't wait to meet the team, meet the guys and see what makes this team a World Series team." Blake Snell on his excitement to join the #Dodgers.@kirsten_watson pic.twitter.com/J7TwIjNqyF

— SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) December 3, 2024

“I told Andrew I need my locker next to Kershaw.”

Blake Snell is excited to be able to learn from Clayton Kershaw 💪

(🎤: @THEREAL_DV) pic.twitter.com/cDXrdJJ9Z0

— AM 570 LA Sports (@AM570LASports) December 4, 2024

He's the latest high-profile addition to L.A.'s rotation, following last winter's signings of Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow. Reigning NL MVP Shohei Ohtani could also potentially return to the mound next season after spending the 2024 campaign as a designated hitter only due to a UCL injury.

Snell was also a free agent last season, but didn't receive the sort of offers he expected after winning the 2023 NL Cy Young award. Instead, he signed a two-year, $62 million deal with the San Francisco Giants that included a player opt-out for 2025, which he exercised.

The 31-year-old didn't replicate his 2023 form, partially hampered by a slow start to the season after signing with the Giants in March, but he still finished a solid 5-3 with a 3.12 ERA, 1.04 WHIP and 145 strikeouts in 104 innings (20 starts).

Andrew Friedman on Blake Snell: “If you can’t beat him, just have him join us.”

— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) December 3, 2024

He was fantastic between early July and the end of September, posting a 1.23 ERA with 114 strikeouts and 30 walks across 80.3 innings. And now he'll join a star-studded Dodgers team that will absolutely be expected to repeat as champions (and might not be done making major splashes in free agency).

Farhan Zaidi could be returning to the Los Angeles Dodgers soon.

Per The Athletic's Fabian Ardaya and Ken Rosenthal, Zaidi is in talks with the team about returning to the organization after the San Francisco Giants fired him from his position as president of baseball operations.

It's unclear what Zaidi's role in the front office would be.

Zaidi who was assistant general manager for the Oakland Athletics before taking over as general manager of the Dodgers in 2014, was in his role with the Giants from 2018 to 2014. He didn't find much success with San Francisco as the team reached the postseason just one time, though the Giants did win the NL West over Los Angeles in 2021.

He was dismissed from his role after the Giants' 80-82 season that saw them miss the postseason for the seventh time in the last eight years. Legendary Giants catcher Buster Posey, a member of the board of directors, took over his role.

In Zaidi's first stint with the Dodgers, the team won its division each season and reached a pair of World Series in 2017 and 2018, losing to the Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox, respectively. During that time, Los Angeles also saw players like Corey Seager, Cody Bellinger and Walker Buehler develop into stars.

According to Ardaya and Rosenthal, Zaidi was "chiefly credited with the acquisitions" of Max Muncy and Chris Taylor.

After helping Los Angeles get back on winning track after decades of struggling, Zaidi now has the chance to return to the Dodgers and enjoy the success of a franchise highlighted by stars like Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani and more.