I am sure you have heard this multiple times over the past few seasons, as the Dodgers have won back-to-back World Series championships, especially after the signings of Kyle Tucker and Edwin Diaz this past offseason. That chatter that you hear is that the Dodgers are just buying championships. The Dodgers are ruining baseball. The Dodgers are the reason there will be a lockout next season. I, too, have heard it all, and it makes me laugh for a variety of reasons, which I will list in this article.
Money Does Not Buy You Championships
In basketball, you can get a couple of great players in free agency, and the odds say you are most likely to win a ring in the near future. Football brings you a few superstar pieces, and your team is most likely going to see the playoffs that season in baseball, at least; that is not the case. Take a look at the New York Mets, who are, as of this writing, sitting in last place in the whole league with a record of 7-15, and that is with the second-highest payroll in baseball. So how are the Dodgers winning and the second-highest payroll in the game has become a laughing stock of the league, lately, you may ask. It is because, while the Dodgers do spend money, they also develop quality players who help the big league roster. Will Smith came from the farm system. Andy Pages also came from the farm system. Drafting and developing future contributors for the major league team has allowed the Dodgers to spend money where it is needed. Still, by providing their own players, they have a best-of-both-worlds approach: they can get key players they need in free agency while also keeping the prospects churning up to the big leagues. The Mets have not done that and have spent and spent and spent with only a few playoff appearances to show for it, and now, with the second-highest payroll in baseball, they have players playing out of position to fill the big league squad.
Rules are Rules
The fact that is lost on most naysayers who like to say the Dodgers are buying championships is that all 29 other big league teams could be doing the same thing, and that is playing within the rules set. The Pirates finally did something, signing prospect Konnor Griffin to a huge contract and betting on his talent before he has become established. Taking risks like that is what a team has to do, but the fact is, owners like to cry poor as they line their pockets and do little to put money into the team. The Dodgers ownership group is committed to winning, and that is something the Dodgers fans should not take for granted. A commitment to winning, while also a commitment to keeping up with the Dodgers’ way of developing big-league talent into championship teams, should always be appreciated before this current ownership group, which was not the case, especially with Fox owning the team, then the up and down circus of the Frank McCourt era. The Dodgers are a prime example of how to play within the rules of the game while also being committed to spending when necessary.
Players Take Less Money to Come to Los Angeles
Take a look at some of the free agent signings recently, and you can see players have left some money on the table to come to the Dodgers. There were reports that Kyle Tucker would have been paid more to join the Mets, but the Dodgers’ championship culture and how the organization treats its players were the deciding factors. Players want money, sure, but they also want to win. Take a look at Juan Soto, who took all that money but has not yet seen the playoffs in Queens, and it does not look like he will see them this season either. Andrew Friedman and company always set a price they are comfortable paying; if the player accepts, that is great; if not, they pivot and move on to someone else. It’s spending big but with calculations. Not spending recklessly and positioning the organization always to be able to do what is needed have been huge pluses.
Buying a championship in baseball is impossible because one player is not going to win you the World Series. Baseball takes a total team effort to win games, from the highest-paid player on the team to the rookie who just got called up. It takes a team, and that is why baseball is the greatest sport there is. Every night, something different happens and will happen. From a walk-off home run to a pitcher’s duel the next night, baseball has it all. If money could buy championships, then surely it would buy a sweep against the Rockies, right? Spending is spending, and naysayers are naysayers. What is true is that it’s never been a better time to be a Dodger fan than right now. You can see the envious teams who could but do not do as the Dodgers do. Take a look at the minor league system when you get a chance and see all the talent the Dodgers have accumulated. These future superstars were not bought in free agency but are being developed and learning championship baseball the Dodger way. The right way. No, the Dodgers are not ruining baseball; they are showing baseball a blueprint for competing for championships and developing talent at the same time. So the next time haters give you a hard time for being a Dodgers fan, smile and carry on as 29 other teams’ fans wish their teams were doing as well as yours. Go Blue.
A couple of things:
The Dodgers accomplishments in player development can probably be attributed to their spending.
The issue shouldn’t be how much the dodgers spend, but why other teams don’t spend very much.