The Los Angeles Dodgers are once again entering a season with a target on their backs-and for good reason. After capturing back-to-back World Series titles, they’re not just the team to beat in 2026-they’re the standard. But while the spotlight shines on the present, the Dodgers' front office is keeping a close eye on the future.
President of baseball operations Andrew Friedman knows sustained success in Major League Baseball doesn’t happen by accident. It’s built through a delicate balance of star power, smart spending, and-maybe most importantly-homegrown talent. And that last piece is where Friedman believes the Dodgers will continue to separate themselves.
“Infusing young players over that time is going to be really important for us to be able to maintain (this level of success),” Friedman said.
That’s not just lip service. The Dodgers have made the postseason 13 straight years, a run of consistency that’s rare in any era.
And even after raising the trophy two years in a row, they still boast the second-best farm system in the league. That kind of pipeline isn’t just impressive-it’s essential when you're trying to keep a championship window open while managing a roster full of high-priced veterans.
The Dodgers have a group of young prospects waiting in the wings, and the challenge now is finding the right time-and the right roles-for them. With core contributors aging and the realities of roster turnover always looming, integrating that next wave of talent will be critical. It’s not just about staying competitive this year; it’s about building a foundation that can carry the franchise deep into the next decade.
But there’s another layer to this story-one that could reshape how teams like the Dodgers operate moving forward.
Major League Baseball’s current collective bargaining agreement is set to expire on December 1, and the tension is already building. The Dodgers’ recent four-year, $240 million deal with Kyle Tucker has reportedly ruffled feathers across the league, particularly among team owners who see it as a sign that the market is spinning out of control.
That deal, and others like it, have reignited calls for a hard salary cap-something MLB has avoided for decades. Even if a cap doesn’t materialize, there’s growing momentum for stricter luxury-tax penalties, which would directly impact high-spending clubs like the Dodgers. This winter alone, they’ve paid more than double on every free agent signing due to tax hits.
So how are the Dodgers preparing for what could be a seismic shift in the league’s financial structure?
“There’s just so much unknown around that,” Friedman admitted. “I’ve now been through a lot of CBAs and have tried to get cute leading into a CBA.
Like, ‘OK, this is where it might be going.’ (Right now), we have no idea.
We are sitting in the cheap seats on that. So for us, it’s about, whatever the rules are, reading and reacting to it and doing everything we can within the rules to be as good as we can be.”
That’s classic Friedman-measured, strategic, and focused on adaptability. The Dodgers aren’t betting on any one outcome. Instead, they’re preparing to pivot, no matter how the new CBA shakes out.
In the meantime, they’ll keep doing what they’ve done better than just about anyone else in baseball: developing young talent, spending strategically, and building a roster that’s as deep as it is dangerous. The Dodgers may be kings of the hill right now, but they’re playing the long game-and they’re playing it well.