Will the Los Angeles Dodgers go nuclear again this winter?
It seems like every time we think the Dodgers are done adding expensive free agents, they're just getting started. Now that superstar Shohei Ohtani's ridiculous contract deferrals allow them to save millions every year on official payroll, there seems to be no limit to what L.A. can do.
If they are going to spend, it would seem wise for the Dodgers to invest in starting pitching, given how run down their rotation was by the playoffs this year. There are lots of good free-agent options, but one recent prediction sees Los Angeles landing the most highly-decorated pitcher on the market this winter.
Steve Adams, Anthony Franco, Darragh McDonald, and Tim Dierkes of MLB Trade Rumors projected a five-year, $160 million contract for two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell, and Adams predicted that the lefty would sign with the Dodgers.
"Snell and Boras could try to... secure six years. Snell has pitched at such a high level that it's easy to see his argument for doing so. But the likelier outcome is a shorter-term deal -- four years at a super-premium annual rate or five years at a very strong (but slightly lesser) annual rate. We're going with the latter for our prediction," the authors said.
"The Giants aren't likely to re-sign him... but Snell will have no shortage of big-money and/or clean-payroll teams pursuing him. The Mets, Red Sox, Dodgers, Orioles, Tigers, Padres and Cubs will all be in the market for starting pitching this winter."
McDonald and Franco predicted that Snell would wind up with the Boston Red Sox, while Dierkes paired him with the New York Mets.
Snell was the best pitcher in baseball from the beginning of July onward, and adding him to the Dodgers just seems unfair at this point. He had a 1.23 ERA and allowed just 33 hits over his last 80 1/3 innings of work while throwing a no-hitter and punching out 105 batters.
Money should be no object to the Dodgers as usual, but competition for Snell will certainly be fierce. We'll soon see where the lefty's priorities lie and where the Dodgers rank in terms of those priorities.