The Los Angeles Dodgers were burned in 2025 by a $72 million investment in Tanner Scott last January. Scott posted a 4.74 ERA and blew 10 saves for the Dodgers, getting replaced by Roki Sasaki as the team’s closer for their World Series run.
USA Today’s Jesse Yomtov believes the Scott mistake will have Los Angeles’s president of baseball operations, Andrew Friedman, hesitant to get into a bidding war with the New York Mets, Atlanta Braves, and Toronto Blue Jays, among others.
Yomtov projects LAD making a much smaller splash with the Tampa Bay Rays’ right-handed free agent Pete Fairbanks, who’s available after the franchise declined his team option for the 2026 season.
Fairbanks could be insurance for Scott, whom the Dodgers are not giving up hope on just yet, despite the down year.
“The lefty Scott struggled in his first year with the Dodgers, posting a 4.74 ERA in 61 regular season games but missed the entire postseason. But Los Angeles is confident the 31-year-old will have a return to form next season after posting a 2.04 ERA in 146 games in 2023 and 2024,” Yomtov wrote.
“With Scott on the books for three more years, the Dodgers may prefer to stay out of the Diaz sweepstakes, which is expected to end in a four- or five-year deal worth about $100 million.”
Los Angeles isn’t perfect, and is losing several free agents this offseason, including Michael Conforto and potentially Kiké Hernández. Clayton Kershaw has also retired after an 18-year pro career.
Still, the Dodgers have enough firepower, even before free agency, to expect them to return to the postseason in 2026.
Clearly, the bullpen isn’t enough of a problem to go star-hunting this winter.
Andrew is a freelance journalist based in Auburn, Alabama, who currently serves as the site expert for Fly War Eagle and Glory Colorado. His work has been featured in The Miami Herald, Bleacher Report and Heavy Sports. Andrew graduated from Brooklyn College with a degree in print journalism in 2017 and has been a sports fan since 1993. He has covered the University of Alabama’s pro day and the American Century Championship.