Andrew Friedman's latest comments suggest Dodgers' organizational shift is coming

The time is now. At least, if the Los Angeles Dodgers want to make sure they're maximizing the primes of two of the best players in baseball it is. Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman simply cannot go ringless across six full seasons together, we won't allow it!

Though the Dodgers have their fair share of roster issues, they can't go another offseason missing out on the top free agents and trade targets while watching a number of their own contributors depart in free agency.

It's time to take some constructive risks with free agent signings and aggresive trades to take that leap. Perhaps if the Dodgers didn't willingly deconstruct a winning roster, we wouldn't be here, but alas. Times have changed and wrongs need to be righted.

Many were wondering what this offseason would hold for the Dodgers. There are the obvious and omnipresent Shohei Ohtani rumors, which have been alive and well for over a year now. But even the Dodgers must admit, signing the two-way star, who can't pitch in 2024, still isn't enough to get this team to the World Series.

The Dodgers' offense wasn't the problem. Or, well, it was, partially, because the clutch hitting has disappeared. But that wasn't quite the primary issue in 2023. This pitching staff is barren/decimated and there's no way a playoff run is in this team's future without making the proper additions.

Andrew Friedman's latest comments suggest Dodgers' organizational shift is coming

The reality is this: Freddie Freeman at $162 million can't be the Dodgers biggest free agent expenditure of all time, and Trevor Bauer can't be the only free agent pitcher given more than $50 million guaranteed. That's not the proper standard for the second-richest team in the sport.

If we're to believe Friedman, fans can expect the Dodgers to go after as many of the best available options as they possibly can. Here's what he said, via Dodgers Nation:

From our standpoint, which has been our mindset and the great fortune that our ownership has provided us, is to be aggressive to go out and put the best team on the field that we can.

Dylan Cease trade, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Blake Snell? Now we're talkin'! The first important step was letting Lance Lynn (among others) depart via rejected team options. The less roster fodder, the better, and it seems the Dodgers are well-positioned to make a couple of blockbuster-esque trades with the amount of prospects they currently employ on the 40-man.

Ownership perhaps realizes the importance of preparing for beyond 2025 right now. The Dodgers have nobody guaranteed a contract beyond 2024 except Betts, Freeman, Chris Taylor and Max Muncy (who just got an extension). Walker Buehler is a free agent after 2024 and it's unclear if he'll stay in LA. Other than that, fans can trust Bobby Miller and James Outman will be here. And there will be a contract question to answer on Will Smith, who is a free agent after 2025.

The 2025 class of free agent pitchers isn't as deep as this year's either. Corbin Burnes and Max Fried headline the names, with other aging/unproven commodities like Chris Sale, Zack Wheeler, Tyler Glasnow, Kyle Hendricks and Shane Bieber available.

Might as well strike gold with two controllable years of Cease, Yamamoto's entire prime, and Snell (a much-needed lefty) coming off his second Cy Young season. Two of those guys plus Ohtani works, too. But that has to be the way the Dodgers are thinking if they've been given the green light to be as aggressive as they need to be.