Justo en: Los Angeles Dodgers’ rotation of dreams following signing Blake Snell, has finalmente confirmed as Sasaki signed a $250m 5-year contract following…

The Los Angeles Dodgers landed the first big fish of the 2024-25 free agency period, signing Blake Snell to a five-year, $182 million contract. It was the worst-case outcome for 29 MLB franchises, with the reigning World Series champs addressing their one relative weakness by adding arguably the best pitcher in baseball.

Snell, 32, has a couple Cy Young awards under his belt. Last season was a bit of a struggle, as Snell didn’t sign with the San Francisco Giants until late in the spring. He dealt with rust and injuries out of the gate, but posted a 1.23 ERA across 14 starts from July onward. Over the second half of the campaign, there was not a single pitcher operating at Snell’s level.

One would expect the hard-throwing southpaw to start for the Dodgers on Opening Day, but even after dropping close to $37 million annually on their new ace, Los Angeles isn’t done prowling the free agent market. Their deferred money strategy opens up a ton of flexibility a team in LA’s position wouldn’t normally have. It also helps that Dodgers ownership is so willing to foot the bill for a contender. Most teams just wouldn’t push it far enough for the deferred money to matter.

In addition to Snell, the Dodgers have been connected to names like Corbin Burnes, Garrett Crochet, and Roki Sasaki. Here’s a “dream” rotation that is still very much within reach for Brandon Gomes and the front office.

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Clayton Kershaw has expressed his desire to pitch again in 2025. It’s hard to fathom that happening anywhere other than Los Angeles. Meanwhile, Roki Sasaki is the most sought-after free agent pitcher left on the market. The 23-year-old will sign as an international amateur, meaning his salary for next season can’t balloon past $7 million. The Dodgers would need to coax him to LA on promises of contending and a strong player development program.

There have been mixed signals as to Sasaki’s desire to play in LA. It once felt like a done deal, but recent reporting has suggested that Sasaki might not want to pitch in the shadow of Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who would soak up endorsement opportunities back home.