The Los Angeles Dodgers, the defending World Collection champions, continued their busy offseason on Friday by asserting an settlement with South Korean infielder Hyeseong Kim on a three-year pact price $22 million assured. 

Kim, 25, is a speed-and-defense service provider with above-average bat-to-ball expertise (albeit additionally with well-below-average energy indicators that might in the end restrict his offensive ceiling). Nevertheless Kim’s MLB profession performs out, he is the newest on a protracted record of transactions executed by the Dodgers over the previous few months. Executives Andrew Friedman and Brandon Gomes have warded off championship complacency by including two-time Cy Younger Award winner Blake Snell and outfielder Michael Conforto, and by retaining slugger Teoscar Hernández and nearer Blake Treinen.

That does not imply the Dodgers can put a stamp on their offseason simply but, nevertheless. Los Angeles nonetheless has a number of items of enterprise left to conduct over the approaching weeks. With that in thoughts, let’s spotlight 4 gadgets remaining on the Dodgers’ to-do record.

1. Land Sasaki, too

The Dodgers have lengthy been thought-about the favorites to land Japanese ace Roki Sasaki, the very best pitcher on this planet not already beneath employment by an MLB staff. They’re reportedly certainly one of a handful of groups to obtain an in-person assembly with Sasaki, suggesting that they are no less than on the brief record of groups into account.

Sasaki, 23, has amassed a profession 2.02 ERA and 5.76 strikeout-to-walk ratio within the Nippon Skilled Baseball league due to a devastating fastball-splitter combo. His 26.8% strikeout-minus-walk proportion places him properly forward of the marks posted by present Dodgers (and his Workforce Japan teammates) Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani, amongst different star NPB pitchers to switch to MLB over the past twenty years.

Sasaki’s youth and lack {of professional} expertise implies that he is categorised by MLB as an novice free agent. That designation limits his incomes upside, all however making certain that he will be one of many largest bargains in MLB over the approaching six years. Sasaki, in flip, has delayed his signing till after bonus swimming pools reset on Jan. 15 as a way of maximizing the meager quantity he’s allowed to obtain upfront.

Ought to the Dodgers land Sasaki, you’ll be able to go forward and use a pen to put in writing his title into their beginning rotation — for the upcoming season and the foreseeable future.

2. Remember about Kershaw

Sasaki could possibly be the face of many Dodgers rotations to return, however that does not imply Los Angeles ought to be prepared to maneuver on from the previous — manifested, on this specific occasion, within the particular person of longtime ace Clayton Kershaw.

Kershaw, 36, was restricted by bodily illnesses to seven regular-season appearances in 2024. None of these outings got here after Aug. 30 as he handled a bone spur in his large toe that required surgical procedure. He additionally needed to endure an operation to restore the meniscus in his left knee. However, he is already declared his intent to pitch in 2025.

“Mentally, I really feel nice,” Kershaw mentioned in October. “I had shoulder surgical procedure final offseason, and my shoulder and elbow, the whole lot, my arm, feels nice. Clearly, I had some powerful luck with my foot this 12 months. However I wish to make use of this surgical procedure. I do not wish to have surgical procedure and shut it down. So I am gonna come again subsequent 12 months and provides it a go and see the way it goes.”

Kershaw declined his participant possibility to start the offseason, however there is not any indication that he intends to depart the Dodgers. Somewhat, he declared himself a “Dodger for all times” on the World Collection parade, suggesting that it is a matter of when and never if he places pen to paper and continues his career-spanning tenure with Los Angeles.

3. Shore up bullpen

Apart from Treinen, the Dodgers have in any other case left their bullpen untouched this winter. It is unclear how a lot of that has to do with the Dodgers being content material to subject this actual aid corps heading into the brand new season, and the way a lot has to do with the free-agent reliever market growing at a glacial tempo. 

It is maybe illustrative that the Dodgers have been, at one level this winter, linked to high free-agent lefty Tanner Scott on the rumor mill. Whether or not or not they continue to be concerned with Scott is anybody’s guess.

Nonetheless, the Dodgers even have some in-built flexibility in the event that they do wish to add Scott or one other arm. Three of their projected Opening Day roster relievers — Alex Vesia, Edgardo Henriquez, and Michael Grove — have minor-league choices remaining. 

4. Resolve the reserve infielder state of affairs

One downstream impact of the Dodgers’ Kim signing has to do with their bench state of affairs. At current, he is projected to be certainly one of three spare infielders on the roster, alongside Chris Taylor and Miguel Rojas. 

Whereas the Dodgers have publicly mentioned there aren’t any trades within the work involving Taylor or Rojas, it stands to motive that they’re going to use the subsequent month to survey the land.

Of the 2, Taylor would appear just like the participant the Dodgers would favor to maneuver. He is coming off a sub-replacement stage season that noticed him hit for a 73 OPS+. Rojas, conversely, loved the very best full-season offensive displaying of his profession by hitting for a 113 OPS+. Alas, Taylor can also be owed extra money than Rojas ($17 million versus $5 million), suggesting that the Dodgers might need so as to add a sweetener to commerce him.

The choice is that the Dodgers simply hold each into the spring as a manner of guarding towards damage. Then, in the event that they nonetheless discover themselves with extra gamers than spots, they will make a name, both on a commerce or, maybe, by designating Taylor for task. 

Whereas most groups would possibly wince at producing $17 million in lifeless cash; not these Dodgers, not once they have their eyes set on changing into the primary repeat World Collection champions in additional than twenty years.