{"id":51010,"date":"2025-11-13T09:00:14","date_gmt":"2025-11-13T09:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/51010\/"},"modified":"2025-11-13T09:00:14","modified_gmt":"2025-11-13T09:00:14","slug":"dodgers-seek-another-back-end-reliever-but-will-they-spend-for-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/51010\/","title":{"rendered":"Dodgers seek another back-end reliever. But will they spend for one?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

LAS VEGAS\u00a0\u2014\u00a0Last offseason, the Dodgers<\/a> swung big in their offseason pursuit<\/a> of impact bullpen additions.<\/p>\n

After largely striking out, however, they might now have to decide if they\u2019re comfortable doing it again.<\/p>\n

The Dodgers don\u2019t have glaring needs this winter<\/a>, but the back end of the bullpen is one area they will look to upgrade. Although the team has ample relief depth, it has no clear-cut closer as it enters 2026.<\/p>\n

The main reason why: Tanner Scott<\/a>\u2019s struggles after landing a lucrative four-year, $72-million pact last winter.<\/p>\n

Scott\u2019s signing represented the second-largest contract, by guaranteed money, the Dodgers had ever given to a relief pitcher (only behind the five-year, $80 million deal closer Kenley Jansen got in 2017). It was a high-risk, high-reward move that, at least in Year 1, quickly felt like a bust.<\/p>\n

Scott posted a 4.74 ERA in the regular season, converted only 23 of his 33 save opportunities, and did not pitch in the postseason (in part because of an abscess incision procedure he underwent in the National League Division Series).<\/p>\n

The Dodgers\u2019 other big reliever acquisition last winter, Kirby Yates<\/a>, suffered a similar fate, posting a 5.23 ERA on a one-year, $13-million deal before injuries also knocked him out of postseason contention.<\/p>\n

Scott will be back next year, and is one of several veteran relief arms the club is hopeful will make improvements. Still, for a team vying for a third straight World Series title, adding a more established closer remains of interest.<\/p>\n

The question now: Will they be willing to do so on another long-term deal? Or will last year\u2019s failed signings make them more hesitant to traverse that same path again?<\/p>\n

It might not take long to start finding out.<\/p>\n

Already at this week\u2019s general managers\u2019 meetings at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, the Dodgers have expressed interest in two-time All-Star Devin Williams, according to people with knowledge of the situation not authorized to speak publicly.<\/p>\n

The 31-year-old right-hander had a down year with the New York Yankees (4.79 ERA, albeit with 18 saves in 22 opportunities), but his underlying metrics remain strong, and the Dodgers\u2019 interest in him dates to last offseason when he was a trade target of the club before ultimately landing in the Bronx.<\/p>\n

With a mid-90s mph fastball and signature \u201cAirbender\u201d changeup that has made him one of the most prolific strikeout threats in all the majors over his seven-year career (in which he has a 2.45 ERA and averages more than 14 strikeouts per nine innings), he would significantly improve their ninth-inning outlook.<\/p>\n

But the Dodgers\u2019 pursuit of him, which was first reported by The Athletic, could come with a tricky decision.<\/p>\n

Williams is expected to have several serious suitors this offseason. And, though some outlets projected him to sign only a one-year deal upward of $20 million, others have him pegged to land a three- or four-year contract.<\/p>\n

By nature, the Dodgers typically prefer shorter-term deals, particularly in a role as volatile as relief pitching. If Williams does receive longer-term offers from other clubs, it\u2019s unclear if the Dodgers would be willing to match.<\/p>\n

The team could face similar dynamics if it goes after other top relievers on the market, including three-time All-Star and top free-agent closer Edwin D\u00edaz (who also comes with the added complication of a qualifying offer that would cost them a draft pick).<\/p>\n

They could wind up having to once again weigh a high-risk, high-reward move.<\/p>\n

And on Tuesday, general manager Brandon Gomes<\/a> struck a decidedly risk-averse tone in the wake of last year\u2019s failed signings.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s one of those things that, I don\u2019t think it\u2019s a \u2018need,\u2019\u201d Gomes said of the team\u2019s interest in making another splashy reliever acquisition. \u201cBut it could be a nice-to-have, depending on how it all plays out.\u201d<\/p>\n

There are other alternatives, of course.<\/p>\n

Former Tampa Bay Rays right-hander Pete Fairbanks is one potentially shorter-term target some in the industry see as a fit in Los Angeles, after racking up 75 saves with a 2.98 ERA over the last three seasons.<\/p>\n

Former Angels and Atlanta Braves right-hander Raisel Iglesias is potentially another, after amassing 96 saves with a 2.62 ERA over the last three years, thanks to a mid-90s mph fastball and swing-and-miss changeup that have kept him productive even at age 35.<\/p>\n

There are other familiar free-agent relievers available this winter, too, from former San Diego Padres closer Robert Suarez to former St. Louis Cardinals and New York Mets right-hander Ryan Helsley (who has also been linked to the Dodgers in trade rumors in the past).<\/p>\n

The Dodgers could also explore the offseason\u2019s trade market, or roll the dice with a current relief corps that still includes Scott (whose 2025 issues had more to do with execution than quality of stuff), Alex Vesia<\/a> (who has established himself as one of the top left-handed relievers in the sport) and Blake Treinen<\/a> (another reliever the team sees as a bounce-back candidate after he struggled with injuries last season in the first season of a two-year, $22 million deal). They will also be getting Brusdar Graterol<\/a> and Evan Phillips back from injuries, with Graterol on track to be ready for the start of 2026 after missing last year with a shoulder problem, and Phillips expected to return at some point in next season after undergoing Tommy John surgery last June.<\/p>\n

For now, however, the team\u2019s search could depend on how the markets for Williams, D\u00edaz and others develop \u2014 and whether it\u2019s willing to take another big bullpen swing on a longer-term deal.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have so many guys that are capable of closing and have done it in the past,\u201d Gomes said, highlighting the team\u2019s current returning bullpen arms. \u201cBut it\u2019s one of the areas we\u2019ll look to potentially add to the team.\u201d<\/p>\n

Skenes wins NL Cy Young Award, Yamamoto third in voting<\/p>\n

Yoshinobu Yamamoto<\/a> will always be remembered for his historic performance in the Dodgers<\/a>\u2019 postseason this past October.<\/p>\n

On Wednesday, his regular-season performance received some deserved recognition, too.<\/p>\n

While Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes won the National League Cy Young Award as expected, after leading the majors with a 1.97 ERA in just his second MLB season, Yamamoto finished third for a campaign in which he went 12-8, posted a 2.49 ERA over 30 starts, and anchored a Dodgers rotation that was ravaged by injuries for much of the season.<\/p>\n

Philadelphia Phillies left-hander Cristopher S\u00e1nchez was the NL\u2019s other Cy Young finalist, and was runner-up. Skenes garnered all 30 first-place votes while S\u00e1nchez received all 30 second-place votes. Yamamoto collected 16 third-place votes.<\/p>\n

Yamamoto\u2019s finish was the highest by a Dodgers pitcher since Julio Ur\u00edas came in third in 2022.<\/p>\n

It caps a year in which the 27-year-old Japanese star made significant strides from his debut rookie MLB season (when he had a 3.00 ERA and was limited to 18 starts because of a shoulder injury) and helped carry the Dodgers to a World Series<\/a> with a 1.45 ERA in six playoff outings and a grueling 37 1\/3 October innings \u2014 including back-to-back complete games in the NL Championship Series and World Series, before back-to-back victorious appearances in Games 6 and 7 of the Fall Classic.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"LAS VEGAS\u00a0\u2014\u00a0Last offseason, the Dodgers swung big in their offseason pursuit of impact bullpen additions. After largely striking…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":51011,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[1883,426,10665,27536,48,52,51,32720,32721,47,50,49,5990,32723,1594,9011,32722,32719,427,10530,72],"class_list":["post-51010","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-los-angeles","tag-club","tag-dodgers","tag-era","tag-interest","tag-la","tag-la-headlines","tag-la-news","tag-last-offseason","tag-long-term-deal","tag-los-angeles","tag-los-angeles-headlines","tag-los-angeles-news","tag-market","tag-mph-fastball","tag-other","tag-save","tag-signing","tag-tanner-scott","tag-team","tag-williams","tag-year"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51010","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=51010"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/51010\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/51011"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=51010"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=51010"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=51010"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}