A thing worth noting is that once you got below the top two or three, there really wasn't anyone out there, and nobody but the Dodgers is doing a whole lot to upgrade. There just seems to be some combination of an unimpressive free agent class, playoffs open enough that teams feel they can get in if things break right, and general over-valuing of prospects. It feels like a situation designed to discourage major moves around MLB. It's just more frustrating here because we had reason to expect a change of direction and should have the resources for it, but you can't buy if nothing's on sale.
All that you say is correct. That being said, despite the rhetoric of some fans (not you) the current roster isn't a disaster. Get one more right handed bat and even a mediocre starter and you have the makings of a rotation that's a little deeper than last year plus a solid bullpen. Just need some innings eating from those starters because the pen got tired down the stretch last year. And maybe some un Bloom like deadline trades.
But here's the thing - short of getting Ohtani or Yamamoto, and maybe even with them, this isn't a WS contender in 2024. That's what I think Breslow realized. So why buy $5 bread that might be stale or moldy, when you can try to make do with the bread you already have and get really fresh bread in 2025.
I do think they'll be a touch more active before Spring Training. A Jansen deal followed by a couple of one-year deals for an arm like Lorenzen and a bat like Duvall make some sense. I think if they were going to bring back Paxton they would have done so already. I think if they do that, they'll be ok.
I'm shocked they're not a player for the high-end arms like Monty or Snell, especially in light of the "full throttle" comments. All I can think is that they completely misjudged the markets at the beginning and have had a hard time adjusting to it. Or maybe Breslow has told them that they're not one arm away and the options next winter might be better.
A thing worth noting is that once you got below the top two or three, there really wasn't anyone out there, and nobody but the Dodgers is doing a whole lot to upgrade. There just seems to be some combination of an unimpressive free agent class, playoffs open enough that teams feel they can get in if things break right, and general over-valuing of prospects. It feels like a situation designed to discourage major moves around MLB. It's just more frustrating here because we had reason to expect a change of direction and should have the resources for it, but you can't buy if nothing's on sale.
All that you say is correct. That being said, despite the rhetoric of some fans (not you) the current roster isn't a disaster. Get one more right handed bat and even a mediocre starter and you have the makings of a rotation that's a little deeper than last year plus a solid bullpen. Just need some innings eating from those starters because the pen got tired down the stretch last year. And maybe some un Bloom like deadline trades.
But here's the thing - short of getting Ohtani or Yamamoto, and maybe even with them, this isn't a WS contender in 2024. That's what I think Breslow realized. So why buy $5 bread that might be stale or moldy, when you can try to make do with the bread you already have and get really fresh bread in 2025.
Craig Breslow is the sleepy time tea bear
I do think they'll be a touch more active before Spring Training. A Jansen deal followed by a couple of one-year deals for an arm like Lorenzen and a bat like Duvall make some sense. I think if they were going to bring back Paxton they would have done so already. I think if they do that, they'll be ok.
I'm shocked they're not a player for the high-end arms like Monty or Snell, especially in light of the "full throttle" comments. All I can think is that they completely misjudged the markets at the beginning and have had a hard time adjusting to it. Or maybe Breslow has told them that they're not one arm away and the options next winter might be better.