The Los Angeles Dodgers have never been afraid to spend big to put a competitor on the field.
That will come in handy this winter when a key member of their rotation and an everyday center field hitter hits the free agent market.
While a handful of All-Stars are already under contract with LA, Jack Flaherty and Teoscar Hernandez are both slated to become free agents this offseason. Keeping both of them may not be an option, even for a team as financially flexible as the Dodgers.
According to a projection by ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel, Flaherty is expected to receive a contract in the $100 million to $200 million range. Hernandez is expected to land in the $40 million to $80 million range.
LA isn’t in a bad position from a salary perspective for the 2025 season. Spotrac estimates they’ll make $171,666,666 next year – the fourth-highest mark in baseball before free agency. Their total payroll in 2024 was more than $238 million, so they have some room to maneuver.
Even with the ability to re-sign a player like Flaherty, it’s hard to imagine the Dodgers signing another high-priced player after signing Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Tyler Glasnow to contracts worth over $461 million in the offseason. That duo, along with Gavin Stone and either internal starting depth or lower-end free agents, should give LA plenty in their starting lineup.
Hernandez is a different story. LA needs to make sure they get him back, especially when his contract pays them in the $23 million per year range. Even a four-year deal worth over $80 million would be worth the investment in a key part of their roster until he turns 35.
The Dodgers don’t need to turn over every penny in the offseason, but they don’t need to spend recklessly, either. Losing Flaherty wouldn’t be the end of the world, but re-signing Hernandez has to be a priority, especially if he ends up just in the range McDaniel projects.
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