Dodgers make official roster move to announce Trevor Bauer signing

For all you Dodgers fans who spent months spamming the Twitter mentions of all the team’s insiders begging them to preemptively (and possibly erroneously) “announce Bauer,” today’s your lucky day.

On Thursday, Los Angeles finally made their blockbuster acquisition of the best free agent starter on the market official, announcing Trevor Bauer’s three-year, $102 million deal to join the reigning World Series champions.

Unfortunately, that meant a member of the 2020 roster had to be jettisoned before the Opening Day ring ceremony, and that unfortunate man was reliever Josh Sborz.

That stings.

Josh Sborz out, Trevor Bauer in for the Dodgers

No, the Dodgers aren’t the first people to eject Sborz in 2021. And until everyone has the vaccine, they won’t be the last.

Sborz, 2015’s second-round pick out of baseball powerhouse UVA, threw 4.1 solid innings for the Dodgers in 2020, allowing just a single earned run. Something he can hang his hat on for sure, but not enough to survive as the 40th man on the 40-man roster.

Hopefully, Bauer will be appearing a bit more frequently in 2021 than that.

In announcing his arrival, the mercurial righty made it clear his decision to accept a front-loaded, opt out-filled contract (after many believed he’d agreed with the Mets) was about far more than the dollar amount or the homecoming spotlight. Instead, Bauer claimed his decision was “all about the organization” — which is definitely a fairly standard justification for anyone who has the opportunity to join the world champs.

Bauer helps potentially form the best rotation in baseball, though the Dodgers’ extremely high upside front four don’t come with complete security.

Clayton Kershaw, about to turn 33, is technically a free agent at the end of the 2021 season. The Dodgers narrowly avoided an unnecessary arbitration battle with Walker Buehler, who seems primed for financial glory after the team takes care of Corey Seager next offseason.

And then there’s David Price, who could return as a stabilizing mid-rotation arm, but also might find his salary leveraged in trade talks this offseason, with half of his sum total being covered by the Boston Red Sox. Or he might not play again in 2021! We don’t know.

For the time being, the Dodgers have an extremely experienced and special unit to trot out, during both a 162-game season and a short series. But it’s not all paradise, and the arms clustered in the back (Julio Urias, Tony Gonsolin, Dustin May, Josiah Gray) very much have to stay ready to make a mainstream impact in the next two years.

Why the 2021 Dodgers could have the greatest rotation of all time

The 2021 Los Angeles Dodgers got even better with Trevor Bauer. The Boys in Blue are so good, in fact, that they could be the best ever.