LOS ANGELES — Andrew Friedman called it the most disappointing elimination in his eight years as the Dodgers’ top front office executive, an “organizational failure” that the team hadn’t been anticipating after a franchise-record 111-win season.
But, three days removed from the Dodgers’ stunning National League Division Series loss to the San Diego Padres, the club’s president of baseball operations didn’t sound as though big changes were on the horizon.
In an end-of-season news conference at Dodger Stadium on Tuesday, Friedman confirmed that manager Dave Roberts will return next season.
“One hundred percent,” he said.
The rest of the coaching staff likely will, as well.
“I don’t anticipate [any changes] right now,” he said.
Friedman said the team still was working through roster decisions, including whether to bring back third baseman Justin Turner and outfielder Cody Bellinger, but stopped short of promising any significant overhaul.
So, what will be the fallout from the Dodgers’ early postseason exit, and why exactly did he think the team faltered in a four-game defeat to the Padres that ranked among the biggest postseason upsets in MLB history?
Friedman didn’t have answers to those questions yet.
“You can kind of go through all of it, and we will, and spend time on it,” he said. “Just trying to find any levers or anything we can do to help put us in a better position next year.”
As he looked back at the series, Friedman pinpointed the Dodgers’ issues with runners in scoring position — they hit just .147 and stranded 32 men on base — as the biggest culprit.
“In the regular season, we led baseball in every statistical category with runners in scoring position. In the series, we were not good,” he said. “The question is, is it baseball? Or are there things we can do to improve upon that?”
He defended the Dodgers’ pitching decisions during a fateful seventh inning in Game 4 — when their attempt to save their best reliever, Evan Phillips, for a potential ninth-inning save backfired with a blown three-run lead.
“You can say, ‘Hey, it would have been great if you had done something different’ with the benefit of hindsight,” he said. “It’s a hard thing when in that moment you could passionately argue both sides. And so many decisions don’t have a clear right or wrong answer until after it plays out.”
Friedman also didn’t think the criticism directed Roberts’ ways in the wake of another October defeat “has been fair,” sharply reiterating the manager has full autonomy over in-game decisions.
“Is that really a narrative?” Friedman said. “After every single postseason I’ve answered that question. So I don’t feel like it’s a narrative … If it ever changes, I’ll let people know.”
Asked if the Dodgers could benefit from a new voice leading the team, Friedman rejected the suggestion.
“I don’t feel like that’s what we need,” Friedman said. “If we felt that a different voice was going to help us cash in on those situations with runners in scoring position — yeah, then maybe we would.
“There are those things that happen in the course of a game that I think is important to tease out — what part of it is baseball? What part of it is leaders?” he added. “I feel like Dave and his coaching staff did an incredible job during the regular season to lead this team to 111 wins. And I don’t feel like it’s a switch that was then turned off, or the players needed a different voice in those games. That’s my personal belief.”
Friedman and general manager Brandon Gomes, who also spoke during Tuesday’s news conference, weren’t ready to discuss many specifics about this upcoming offseason. Gomes was non-committal about Bellinger’s future.
Despite posting below-league-average numbers for a second consecutive season — and being benched for Games 3 and 4 of the NLDS — the former NL most valuable player likely will make more than $17 million in arbitration next season if the Dodgers tender him a contract. If they don’t, they would be potentially sacrificing Bellinger’s final season of team control.
“We still think there’s upside,” Gomes said. “So those are discussions we’re going to have moving forward as we look into what 2023 looks like.”
Friedman declined to say whether the team will pick up Turner’s $16 million club option for next year. He complimented the veteran for being “a huge part of our success” but added that “we’re gonna take time to meet as a group and really get into those things.”
The future of pending free agent Clayton Kershaw is also unclear. The pitcher could be extended a qualifying offer, something the Dodgers did not do ahead of his free agency last year as a courtesy to give him time to contemplate his career choices.
Friedman wasn’t sure how the team would proceed this offseason, saying only that his “strong hope is that Clayton Kershaw is pitching here next year.”
The Dodgers will have other questions to address over the winter.
Will they try to re-sign shortstop Trea Turner, who is expected to be one of the most coveted (and expensive) free agents on the market? Will they bring back free-agent pitchers such as Tyler Anderson, Andrew Heaney and Tommy Kahnle? Will their payroll continue to soar past MLB’s luxury tax thresholds as one of the highest in the sport — and will the outcome of pitcher Trevor Bauer’s suspension appeal impact their financial flexibility?
Friedman said only that he expects the ownership group to “do everything they can from their standpoint to put us in position to go out and win a championship.”
“I don’t anticipate that changing,” he added.
For the rest of their offseason unknowns, only time will tell. After their unexpected elimination, the Dodgers suddenly have plenty of it.
