Dodgers could steal star Padres reliever who just opted out of contract with SD

It's no secret that the Dodgers' bullpen needs some major work this offseason, after one of their greatest strengths in 2024 turned into their singular greatest weakness in 2025. Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates didn't perform as expected and were, in fact, pretty terrible; Blake Treinen had by far the worst year of his career; Michael Kopech only pitched 11 innings and is hitting free agency.

The Dodgers will do what they do best and spend a lot of money to try to fix the problem, but we can hope that this time they'll go for relievers who didn't just have flash-in-the-pan seasons before hitting free agency.

Apart from Edwin Díaz, who opted out of his contract with the Mets, Robert Suarez, who just did the same with the Padres, will be the most sought-after closer on the market. Suarez just wrapped up a completely healthy season with the Padres and led the National League with 40 saves.

That definitely sounds like a future Dodger. LA already went out and got one elite former Padres closer in Scott, and even though it hasn't worked out so far, why not add another?

Robert Suarez opts out of contract with Padres and seems like a prime Dodgers target

The Athletic predicts Suarez will make $54 million over three years in free agency, exactly the same AAV as Scott's four-year deal with the Dodgers (Spotrac predicts four years and $67.3 million). Other teams might be loathe to spend so much money on another reliever when the first contract didn't work out, but the Dodgers seem far more likely to just keep throwing money at the problem and hope that new solutions work, while also trying to fix the guys they're already contractually stuck with.

Scott was accused of being a "traitor" by Padres fans after signing with the Dodgers, to which he (hilariously) responded, "How can I be a traitor? I got traded there and was only there two months."

Suarez would be a different story, though. After starting his professional career in the Mexican League, then spending some time in NPB, he landed in MLB with the Padres for the 2022 season and has been there ever since.

But the Padres probably won't be willing to pay him as much as $18 million a year, if not more, and the Dodgers need bullpen help.

Suarez might have to apologize to Shohei Ohtani about that plunking incident back in June, but we're sure that bygones can be bygones as long as everyone keeps winning.