Late Saturday night, the Dodgers stunned the baseball world by trading for reigning Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal. Los Angeles sent a package of three prospects to the Tigers in return for Skubal, a pending free agent. Detroit received outfield prospect Zyhir Hope, pitcher River Ryan, and pitcher Brady Smith. Hope is a top-30 prospect and viewed as a potential future superstar, but far from a sure thing. Ryan has already made his MLB debut, but did not pitch at all last season due to an elbow injury suffered in 2024.
The Dodgers, adding arguably the best pitcher in baseball, have social media in an uproar. With the CBA set to expire after this season, there could be serious calls for both a salary cap and salary floor in the next labor agreement. I understand the argument and allure of rooting against the Dodgers. I grew up rooting against the Yankees in the late 1990s and early 2000s. It seemed like every major free agent eventually ended up in pinstripes. But should we really be mad at a team that consistently spends the money and resources to go all-in and win a championship? I say no.
The owners we should be mad at are the ones who don’t spend the money, or use public funds to benefit their own pocketbooks. Look at Athletics owner John Fisher. He has a net worth in the billions of dollars, yet was unable to come to a deal to keep the Athletics in Oakland. Instead, he is moving the team to Las Vegas, where the state and county will contribute some of the money required to build a new stadium. Owners like Fisher are the real villains. Sure, feel free to criticize the moves that Mets owner Steve Cohen has made. But don’t criticize him for spending the money to try and win every year.
It is worth noting that teams like the Dodgers, Yankees and Cubs do benefit from certain advantages. They have their own TV networks, a huge advantage in today’s landscape. But they also often face stiffer consequences for signing free agents and exceeding salary thresholds. This past draft, the Dodgers received a ten-pick penalty on their first-round pick, and lost their second, third, and fifth round picks as a result of signing free agents who had received a qualifying offer.
This leads me to my next point. The Dodgers definitely have signed and traded for their fair share of superstar free agents the last five or so years. Freddie Freeman, Mookie Betts, Shohei Ohtani, Blake Snell, Kyle Tucker, and now Skubal. But they also consistently have one of the best farm systems in baseball, giving them the ammunition to fill needs at the trade deadline. While not all teams have the resources that come from a sweet TV deal, all teams can prioritize player development and scouting.
Some of the best farm systems in baseball come from smaller markets. Milwaukee and Tampa Bay come to mind. Seeing Skubal pitch in Milwaukee would have been fun, and somewhat reminiscent of the Brewers landing CC Sabathia in 2008. Alas, Skubal is now in Dodger blue.
With all this being said, I still don’t think it is a foregone conclusion that the Dodgers win their third straight World Series this fall. After all, it took them all seven games to beat a quality Toronto team last year. Specifically speaking of the Guardians, I applaud them for being somewhat aggressive and adding Jo Adell, Foster Griffin, and Nathaniel Lowe at the deadline. I just wish more front offices took an aggressive approach to the trade deadline and free agency.