$72 Million Los Angeles Dodgers Contract Named Among ‘Riskiest’ in MLB
With the offseason winding down, it is time to start evaluating the good, bad, and ugly contracts that have been signed so far. Fox Sports’ Deesha Thosar ranked her six riskiest contract signings of the offseason, and the No. 2 contract on the list was new Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Tanner Scott. Scott signed a four-year deal worth $72 million, making him the third highest-paid reliever behind only Edwin Diaz and Josh Hader. Scott is coming off a career year in 2024, pitching to a 1.75 ERA and striking out 84 batters across 72 innings. Scott went 22-for-24 in save attempts, with his last blown save coming in the middle of June. Paying relievers a large amount of money can be worrisome due to the fact that they can go from excellent to horrible faster than any other position in the league. Hader is a prime example of the sudden shift in numbers. He had a 1.28 ERA in 2023, received his large contract, and then had a 3.80 ERA in 2024, one of the worst seasons of his career.
Scott’s contract may turn out to be one of the best reliever contracts in the history of MLB, but it is understandable as to why Dodgers fans could and should have a bit of concern about the deal.
Fans erupt after learning how many Dodgers players made MLB Top 100
After winning the 2024 World Series, the Los Angeles Dodgers went on a spending spree that angered some baseball fans. But the Dodgers faithful are enjoying every minute of their team’s utter domination of the offseason. Now, MLB.com has put Los Angeles’ 2025 super roster in perspective, releasing its list of the Top 100 Players in baseball.
The Dodgers have three players in the top 10 and nine players in the Top 100, according to ESPN’s Blake Harris on X. MLB.com ranks them: 1. Shohei Ohtani, 5. Mookie Betts, 8. Freddie Freeman, 36. Blake Snell, 52. Teoscar Hernandez, 60. Will Smith, 63. Yoshinobu Yamamoto, 71. Tyler Glasnow and 100. Roki Sasaki.
The Dodgers have the most players in the Top 100 followed by the Atlanta Braves, who have seven. The Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres and New York Yankees are tied with six players each in the Top 100.
LA’s group includes four position players, four starting pitchers and Ohtani, who will return to the mound in 2025 after being limited to the designated hitter role while he recovered from Tommy John surgery last season.
The Dodgers have built around their superstar core this offseason
The Dodgers had three Japanese-born pitchers make the Top 100, including the newly acquired Sasaki. LA drew the ire of baseball fans across the country when they landed the prized starter. In addition to making MLB.com’s Top 100 list, Sasaki was named the number one prospect in baseball by ESPN. Incredibly, the Dodgers have eight of the Top 100 MLB Prospects, the most of any team.
LA has had such a monumental offseason that the addition of key relievers Kirby Yates and Tanner Scott goes somewhat unnoticed when discussing the team. The roster is just too stacked.
There’s clearly no doubt that the Dodgers are the most improved team in baseball, despite winning the World Series last season. Now it’s up to manager Dave Roberts to make sure all the talented individuals the team has acquired can play together, creating something even greater than the sum of its parts.
