The Dodgers Aren’t Breaking Baseball, They Are Just Playing It Better

Aug 03, 2026 08:30 PM - 3 hours ago 1

ESPN’s Jeff Passan had it first:

And pinch those 18 words, the minds of shot fans everyplace exploded. “Of course the Dodgers!”; “Was location immoderate doubt?”; “The rich | conscionable get richer”; “Why fuss moreover playing the game?”; and the like.

But the Los Angeles Dodgers are not breaking baseball. They are conscionable playing it amended than the different 29 teams – some connected and disconnected the field. They are doing it amended astatine the awesome convention level and astatine each level of the minors. They are doing it amended pinch their coaching and successful the beforehand office. And this is not a lawsuit of “don’t dislike the player, dislike the game,” because the crippled the Dodgers are playing tin and should beryllium played by many, galore different teams.

When asked straight really he would respond to the conception that the Dodgers are breaking baseball, president of shot operations Andrew Friedman responded to Forbes.com by saying, “I passionately disagree.”

When speaking pinch group astir shot anterior to the Dodgers’ Sunday precocious day tilt pinch the Boston Red Sox, 1 taxable was constant: Why didn’t different teams make this trade? Los Angeles acquired Skubal by sending Zyhir Hope, River Ryan, and Brady Smith backmost to Detroit. Not precisely a king’s ransom.

Zyhir Hope

Hope was a 13th information prime successful 2023, and FanGraphs attaches a 50 Future Value (FV) to him (which is fundamentally average). He is the #25 imaginable successful each of MLB, and the Dodgers primitively acquired him from the Cubs for first baseman Michael Busch, who the squad didn’t request because they person a feline named Freddie Freeman playing location for the foreseeable future. With #3 imaginable Josue De Paula presently playing good successful Double-A, the squad could easy portion pinch a insignificant convention outfielder - moreover 1 arsenic highly-touted arsenic Hope.

River Ryan

Ryan was an 11th information prime successful 2021 by the San Diego Padres. FanGraphs gives him a 55 FV. Ryan missed the full 2025 play pinch Tommy John surgery, and has not sounded since June 17th arsenic he deals pinch a hamstring issue. He is expected to beryllium backmost – and pitching for the Tigers – earlier season’s end. But he astir decidedly will not capable the $32 million, two-time Cy Young winning spread near by Skubal. Many prognosticators thought that the Tigers would request a large convention starter that could astatine slightest capable Skubal’s spot successful the rotation. Alas, it didn’t return that. It should beryllium noted that the Dodgers acquired Ryan from San Diego successful 2022 successful speech for infielder Matt Beaty, who is presently retired of baseball.

Brady Smith

The Dodgers drafted Smith successful the 3rd information successful 2023. He has not sounded supra High-A, and FanGraphs gives him a 40+ FV. Keith Law of The Athletic called Smith a “lottery ticket” and said, “I could spot a mid-rotation starter here, but his probability remains debased for now.”

Money

Where the Dodgers person a competitory advantage complete different teams is their expertise to sorb the astir $10 cardinal owed to Skubal for the remainder of the season. But that magnitude is not beyond the scope of the Rays aliases the Brewers aliases the Cubs aliases galore of the different teams looking for reinforcements – and the eventual reinforcement astatine that – astatine the waste and acquisition deadline. The other teams could have paid that tax; they chose not to. And that is thing that the Dodgers are not acrophobic to do. Friedman and proprietor Mark Walter cognize that flags alert everlastingly and that windows enactment unfastened for only truthful long. Add to that nary 1 knows what financial constraints will beryllium successful spot successful 2027 and beyond aft a caller CBA is settled. The Dodgers – astatine each level – embody what head Dave Roberts said anterior to Sunday’s game: “All I attraction astir is winning the World Series successful 2026.”

Final Word

On Sunday day Friedman, erstwhile asked astir the Dodgers’ effect connected baseball, went connected a agelong soliloquy, saying:

“This is astir the business we person pinch our fans who travel retired 50,000 ample and the passion they person for this team; the guys successful that clubhouse who are doing everything they tin to put america successful a position to a triumph a World Series; and, fortunately, the unthinkable activity done by our scouting staff, subordinate improvement staff, our beforehand office, [and] analytics group. All of our different departments person their fingerprints each complete this. And to put america successful a position to not only beryllium competitory present [in the clubhouse] but to besides person a very beardown workplace system, which puts america successful a position to person these types of conversations. So I deliberation it is conscionable unthinkable activity by a batch of group that allowed for this and it is special. And we are not going to beryllium flippant astir this infinitesimal successful clip and really typical this group, [how special] this era tin beryllium successful the history of this incredibly storied organization. And we are going to do everything we tin to triumph the past crippled of the year.”

The Dodgers worth winning supra everything else. Sure, they person much intends to do so, but money is not what built the workplace strategy aliases the beforehand agency aliases the organizational methods that make them the champion successful the business. Hard work, acumen, skill, a small spot of luck, and a ton of courage are the keys to their success. If that is breaking baseball, that says much astir the different 29 teams than it does the Boys successful Blue.