Andrew Friedman's past Dodgers masterpieces sealed Tarik Skubal blockbuster trade

This morning's bottom line read: back-to-back champions acquire back-to-back Cy Young winner. That's a wild sentence to actually type out, but as Dodgers fans we're allowed to pinch ourselves and just enjoy it for a second.

Tarik Skubal is a Dodger. The cost was Zyhir Hope, River Ryan, and Brady Smith — a package that cost the big-league roster nothing. But the real story here isn't just this weekend's trade. It's that Andrew Friedman had already won the trades that made this blockbuster possible, years before Skubal was ever on the table.

But first, lets sit with that bottom line and put things in perspective: the Dodgers landed the best pitcher in baseball without touching a single big-league piece and without giving up Josue De Paula, Eduardo Quintero, Mike Sirota, or Emil Morales — the four names most evaluators would point to first as the prospects who could have the highest upside.

In my opinion, Hope and Ryan were the two names in the system's top 50 carrying the most real question marks. Hope's size and swing-and-miss tendencies and Ryan's age, Tommy John recovery and a recurring hamstring issue that's cost him time all year are legitimate. That makes them the two most expendable as a result. Friedman traded away risk and kept upside, and still landed a two-time Cy Young winner.

Andrew Friedman's previous Zyhir Hope, River Ryan trades made Tarik Skubal possible

Start with Hope. In January 2024, the Dodgers needed 40-man space to sign Teoscar Hernández and James Paxton. Michael Busch, blocked at first base and in the outfield behind an All-Star lineup, was the obvious asset to move. Friedman flipped him and reliever Yency Almonte to the Cubs for left-hander Jackson Ferris and a toolsy 19-year-old outfielder the Cubs had just drafted: Zyhir Hope. Busch has turned into a nice everyday piece in Chicago, no argument there. But he was never playing regularly in Los Angeles, so Friedman turned a blocked piece into a first-round-caliber prospect. Two and a half years later, that prospect became a headline piece in a trade for the best pitcher in baseball.

Then there's Ryan. Back in March 2022, the Dodgers sent utility infielder Matt Beaty — a bench player who'd never be more than a bench player — to the Padres for a converted two-way college shortstop-turned-pitcher named River Ryan. San Diego got a spare part. The Dodgers got a right-hander who would touch triple digits, miss bats at every level, and become a legitimate front-of-rotation talent when healthy. Ryan's health has been the story of his pro career, but that's exactly the kind of buy-low bet Friedman has made a career out of: the vision of an infielder turning into a top-100 arm that eventually helps bring back one of the biggest impact talents in the game.

Even the throw-in wasn't an accident

Brady Smith wasn't part of any heist. He was Los Angeles' own third-round pick in 2023 — a projectable Tennessee high schooler the front office developed from scratch. Including a homegrown arm as the third piece, who has a major league ETA of 2029 (without touching Justin Wrobleski or Emmet Sheehan), says as much about the org's drafting and development as its trading.

None of this happens without the moves that came before it. Friedman didn't just win the Skubal trade Saturday night. He won the trades that made it possible — turning a blocked first baseman and a bench infielder into the best pitcher alive for a run at a three-peat. That's not luck. That's the machine working as designed, and it's why Dodgers fans get mornings like this one.

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