Dodgers Territory - Biggest Spring Training Questions, Fabian Ardaya Joins!

Episode Date: February 6, 2025

DT host Clint Pasillas breaks down the five key storylines he'll be tracking as the Dodgers kick off spring training. (1:07)(6:29) Fabian Ardaya, Dodgers writer for The Athletic, joins the show to analyze the biggest headlines before pitchers and catchers report next week.(8:54) The last few roster spots are still in play, with Hyeseong Kim and Andy Pages will be making their case throughout Cactus League play.(12:54) The expectation is that the Dodgers will finalize a reunion with Clayton Kershaw before the season gets underway, but where does he fit into the jam-packed rotation?(18:45) Is the Dodgers’ big spending fueling the push from some owners for a salary cap?(24:24) Plus, Shohei Ohtani is poised to be the ultimate X-factor for the Dodgers, making a major impact both on the mound and at the plate.Subscribe to DT on YouTube! DT is LIVE on Mondays & Thursdays at 12p PT/3p ET all year long!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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hits the ground running, and is as dominant as his talent suggests he can be, Then all of a sudden, you're looking at the ceiling of this Dodgers team for this year, and you're thinking about what this team can be historically. Hi, hello, and welcome to another edition of Dodgers territory with just me. Alano will be back next week, guys. She is enjoying her life on vacation, but what is going on, party people, we are almost ready for spring training.

Players are already at Camelback Ranch. We're having a good time, and we're going to have a good time today. Fabian Ardaya of the Athletic is, joining me on the show. Please sound off in the comments. Please give the show a thumbs up. Please subscribe. We're trying to get to like, I don't know,

9,000, 10,000 subscribers. You could help us out. Also, please check out our show in a podcast, in its podcast form, rate and review the show, all that kind of stuff, if you don't mind. But before we get into

welcoming Fabian, I want to talk about five things. I am watching this spring training. As good as time as any to get into today's big ticket guys again spring training is here we are feeling good the dodgers are feeling good dodgers are locked loaded stacked and um it's a fun time to be a dodger fan said that a whole bunch this off season but quickly let's get into it number five we're going in this order 5 4 321 number

five i am watching the fifth thing i'm watching the spring training however you want to say it roki roki roki sasaki making that transition to the states how well does he handle that how well does he command a big league baseball? And if he struggles, like we saw Yoshinobu Yamamoto's struggle during spring training last year, obviously didn't matter in the long run. Dude's a World Series champ. But if he struggles, how does Sasaki handle that? How does he bounce back?

That's one of the things I am watching. Number two or number four, if I'm sticking in line with what I said. I am watching the kind of smattering here of Tony Gonson, Dustin May, Bobby Miller, particularly those three dudes that kind of sort of figure to fit into that fourth, fifth, sixth starter competition for the team this year. How do they look early in spring training? Who stands out? Who's somebody who could get sent to AAA? Because there might not be enough room for all these dudes.

Spoiler alert, there is not enough room for all of those dudes, especially when other guys get healthy. One guy, Shohay Otani. Number three, I am watching everything Shohei Otani this spring training. How does the swing look coming off of that shoulder surgery? And more importantly, when will we see him getting into games as a pitcher? I want to see Shoay Otani throwing a baseball for the Dodgers in that uniform. When are we going to see him throwing a baseball? And more importantly with that, are we going to see him actually pitch in a spring training game before the regular season?

or I should say really before the start of domestic regular season, like not so much in any of the Japan series. Dave Roberts, the Dodgers already said he's not pitching against the Cubs in Japan, probably not pitching in any of those exhibition games in Japan, but there is a chance, and it could be a whole lot of fun if we see Shohei Otani throwing a baseball for the Dodgers off the mound, either at Dodger Stadium or at Angel Stadium against the Angels. That's one opportunity.

They could get Shohei a start. while still giving him enough time to kind of build up early in spring training. So that's the third thing I'm watching. Everything. Show hey, show, hey, show hey. Number two on my list, you've got to be looking at the second base competition. And this is something definitely we're going to be talking to Fabian a whole lot more when he joins us in just a second. But that second base competition, you have to be watching.

There's Haysson Kim, Chris Taylor, Miguel Rojas in the mix, Tommy Edmund. Hey, maybe at some point there's a Kike Hernandez. but with the trade of Gavin Lux, you're likely seeing maybe some sort of, not a platoon, but you're going to see a rotation. You're going to see CT in there. You're going to see Kim in there. You're going to see maybe see Halang Kim get that opportunity to kind of run away with it. Or you're going to see a rotation where they find a way to keep people happy, healthy, relevant,

as Dave Roberts likes to say. And maybe 2B is kind of what they sort of had with the DH. different points and kind of in the outfield. Basically, getting people in and out of the lineup goes a long way for this team. So Kim, Hassan Kim could, He'son Kim could be the guy who maybe takes a lion's share of starts there at 2B, but we'll talk more with Fabian about that in just a second. Of course, Tommy Edmund is somebody who could run away with it as well. If Andy Paix takes some leaps and bounds in center field this season as, as well as Miguel

Rojas could see a lot of time at 2B. But number one for me, spring training-wise, number one storyline I'm watching is, of course, have talked a whole bunch about it. I don't want to keep beating a dead horse, but you have to be watching Mookie Betts and how he handles that shortstop full-time transition. You know, does he get better with the whole offseason to work out there as opposed to a week and some change like he got last year? Also, I'm going to be watching how often the Dodgers get Tommy Edmund and Hey,

on Kim, maybe some reps there at second base during spring training. There's certainly some reason for concern over the Mookie Betts kind of shortstop plan. I've seen it. I've asked it myself, why are the Dodgers doing this? And I've also answered that because if it works out, the Dodgers look like geniuses. You get arguably the best shortstop, even if he's average. You get one of the best short stops in baseball when you're talking about how you can project Mookie Betts offense. So, and if it doesn't work, you still got some backups. You got Tommy Edmund. You got Miguel Rojas laying around. So those are the five things I'm watching. I wanted to get that in, get that out of the way before we welcome our guest. And our guest

is here. He is locked in. You guys know him as the man who does all of the Dodgers coverage beat rider over at the athletic covering your Dodgers. His name is Fabian Ardia. And what is going on? Fabian, thank you for joining me here today on Dodgers territory. And how you doing my dude? I'm good just a couple days before I drive down in Arizona for spring training so getting my last little bit of Southern California in before spending them up in West Valley of Phoenix. Yeah, yes. Spring training is it's a fun hell week, but it's hell month for people when you guys go out there. You spend a lot of time and there's fun, there's excitement, and then you realize, oh, no, I have to do this for another like six weeks. I guess it's not as crazy with Tokyo happening everything.

But regardless of all that, we appreciate everything. do covering this team and yeah spring training right around the corner what is the stop the top storyline top headline that you're watching this spring i think number one it's mooky bets that's sort of how he fits a short stop how he sort of looks uh especially after a full off season i think that's the big thing they've sort of talked about uh the idea that having a full off season as opposed to just a couple weeks before opening day like last year is going to help uh sort of give him a chance to work through developing himself at shortstop. Obviously, it's still a difficult transition for anyone to make, let alone, even for someone

as talented as Mookie Betts, shortstop's a tough position. He hasn't played it since he was a teenager. There's still some concern about sort of the throwing angles, arm angles, and that was the big thing for him last year. But the sort of hope is that more time at the position, trust in sort of the athlete that Mookie Betts is, that that's sort of going to make things. lineup. And the Dodgers roster, the best way it lines up is with boogie bets at shortstop. So that's the number one thing I think you're looking at in strange train.

A ambitious, well-intentioned, ferocious and wealthy mother looks like in the black community. This woman's history month, the podcast Keep It Posit, Sweetie, celebrates the power of women choosing healing, purpose, and faith, even when life gets messy. Love is not a destination. You have to work on it every day. Keep It Posit, Sweetie creates space for honest conversations on self-worth, love, love, growth and navigating life with grace and grid led by women who uplift, inspire, and tell the truth out loud. I have several conversations with God and I know why.

It took 20 years. To hear these and more, listen to Keep It Pies Sweetie on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. It's the new me and it's the old them. Everybody's on their journey. And your journey is different to this. This Woman's History Month, the podcast, if you knew better with Amber Grimes, spotlights women who turn missteps into momentum and lessons into power.

I think coming out of where I came from, I'm from the Bronx. I think I grew up really poor. I didn't know that then because I very much used my creativity to romanticize life. And I'm like, my mom did a really good job of like, you step back and you're like, whoa, we, I don't know how we made it. So a lot of my life was like built out of like survival to get to the next place. It's like my drive, my like tunnel vision of like, I got to be better. I got to achieve this was off the strengths of like I want to make a better life for us. If You Knew Better brings real talk from women who've lived it, unpacking career pivots, relationship lessons, and the mindset shifts that changed everything.

Listen to If You Knew Better with Amber Grimes on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Daniel Jeremiah and I'm Greg Rosenthal. And this is 40s and free agents. The games may be over, but the NFL never stopped. This is my favorite part of the calendar. Yeah, mine too, Greg, free agency, the combine, the NFL draft, Pro Days, trades. This is where teams reshape their future. This is where Daniel Jeremiah makes his money.

On 40s and free agents, we break down every move that actually matters. From my draft evaluations, mock drafts, and team fits, to my top 101 free agents and how real rosters are built, cap space, contracts, and all the tough decisions included. You got quarterbacks on the move. We got teams rebuilding. It's hope season. Yeah, absolutely.

It's hope season. We'll tell you what's real, what's noise, and what it means for your favorite team. Smart analysis, real conversations every week. I don't know about the smart, but definitely analysis. Listen to 40s and free agents on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Yeah, I like what he said at Fan Fest or Dodger Fest this past weekend,

saying in so many words, this is an area the team needs me. This is an area the team really needs. So I'm going to step in there and I'm hoping I can get another piece of that gold on my glove there as a shortstop. If not, maybe he slides over to second base at some point during the season. I was talking just before you join about that competition at 2B. I want to focus on the Haysong Kim factor of it. How do you think the Dodgers are kind of viewing him?

Is he somebody that could be the, I don't want to say, era parent to what Gavin Lux was, but is he somebody that could take and run with that job at second base? Or we've also heard maybe he's sort of a utility guy. How do you think the Dodgers are viewing Kim? And how do you think honestly he ends up playing out for this team? I think a lot will be determined the spring. I think one of the few like real position battles that there actually is. The spring is for who gets the majority of a bat's between Hayson Kim and Andy Pyes. And a lot of that's going to depend on how they've sort of play. Is Andy Paz going to sort of assert himself as a guy who deserved more every day at bats.

Then you can sort of have a situation where you have Tommy Edmund maybe bouncing between center field, second base, and sort of have Hayes and Kim not really play against lefties. Or if Hayes and Kim really hits the ground running, which is difficult considering it's a tough transition from the KBO to Major League Baseball. But if he does, and he becomes an everyday second baseman, then you can sort of look at a situation or a primary second baseman. Then you have a situation where you have maybe Tommy Edmund bouncing back and forth from the infield, center field, with Andy Paez, and then.

center. I think that's sort of the big thing is sort of who has the better spring between Hayson Kim and Andy Pahas. I think the most of the time when Kim is playing, it will be at second base. Maybe some short stuff mixed in if you need to give Muky a day or something like that. But like I think that's where the biggest factor lies. And we'll start to see it. Obviously, Kim has kind of acknowledged the big difference between KBO and Major League Baseball is velocity. How quickly do you make that adjustment? We saw a guy like Young Hew Lee last year who really had a good start to the season before he got injured and hurt his shoulder but really adapted very quickly and then there's a guy like hossom kim where it took in a couple months but then became a league average bat slightly about

the league average bat with the more valuable short stops in baseball so we'll see um it wouldn't be a dodgers show wouldn't definitely wouldn't be a dodgers territory show if i didn't ask somebody about keke hernandez of course we know the the front office said at fan fest hey yeah the door is never closed on Kike, I've been, uh, I was hoping they would, you know, bring him out and have him burst out of a cake and saying, I'm back everybody, you know, this is what you want. This is what the fan wants. The fans want. There was a Kike, Kikea chant there. Um, that's another dude where if he does come back, let's say there is something in the works where Kike Hernandez is returning to this team. throws another wrinkle in there to be maybe some left field, maybe at center field.

Um, should I, I'm going to make this about me. Should I give up my hope, uh, for a Kike Hernandez returned? think there's still a path i don't think you should give up hope i i don't think it's ever a thing about interests i think both teams both sides are very interested in a reunion it's just matter but how do the pieces fit in this roster uh that would be complicated to put them on the active roster to start the season barring a change barring a move or barring maybe someone like andy pahas being a surprise non-inclusion on the opening day roster or they make some other kind of move to try to clear up a roster spot because that's right now that position player group looks really set but obviously things change things change all the time we saw last spring sort of similar scenario then they trade manny margot

and all of a sudden keene her and is on board so i don't think it's necessarily the same situation as clinton kursha where it's just a matter of okay once the 40 man rochester spot opens up they'll finalize the deal they'll figure out later but i don't think that you can close the door on k korenda's being back yet obviously the daughter's not the only team interested there but i think it's the fit that makes the most sense for both parties as long as there is a spot for him on the roster because just opening up one spot out of the 13 position players kick here and as is versatile enough defensively to make the rest of it work yeah we say it a lot there's a there's a lot of talent on this team we can go a million different directions with it and and I'll also add to I

appreciate somebody else saying I'm not crazy for keke I think a lot of fans are going to appreciate that. But if we're talking about a lot of talent, you can't not look at the starting rotation group. You could definitely sense that this front office felt burned as the season went along and everybody just kept dropping like flies. But you got Yamamoto. They bring in Snell, Glasnall, Glasnall returning Otani at some point, the rookie, Roki Sasaki in the mix, that assortment of the Gonsolin, May, Miller, Nack, and at some point, we're anticipating that Clayton Kurshaw contract soon. How does all of that fit together? And more so, How does Clayton Kershaw, the Future Hall of Famer, how does he fit into a picture with all of those talented arms?

Not to say he's not talented in that he can't get it done, but how does he fit into the picture where maybe down the road he can be picking up some postseason starts for this team? Yeah, I think the scenario is obviously like he's probably hoping to be back at some point midseason. He's still obviously in the early stages of a throwing progression. They have sort of see how the knee feels, how the toe feels, and also how that surgically repaired shoulders. fields. Obviously, if all goes well, there's going to be spots that open up over the course of this season. We sort of saw that last year. We sort of saw, see that with sort of how this pitching rotation is constructed. It's a lot of names, a lot of talented names, but also guys who are either coming off injury, have dealt with injury in the past, and they'll find ways to

sort of piece it together. I think understanding that Dustin May and Tony Gonsolin are both coming off major elbow surgery, same thing with Show Hey Otani. You have a guy in Tyler Glass now who has sort of said that he wants to stay healthy all season, but I think the most important time you wanted to keep him healthy for is October. Do you sort of build in rest for certain guys? There's going to be ways for guys to slot in, and obviously the names are going to get longer. You see a guy like Emmett Sheehan who said he's going to be pitching in rehab games in May or June, so there's going to be more and more options popping up. But I think we saw last year, there's no such thing as too much pitching depth. And things have a way of sorting themselves out, especially on the

pitching front when it comes to finding bodies to sort of throw at the problem. I think the Dodgers have even more bodies to throw at the problem that they did last year when they used a franchise record 40 pitchers. Yeah, yeah, sometimes for the better, oftentimes for the worse. You mentioned Dustin May in there. I mentioned Dustin May. He's the one guy where it, it doesn't seem like even if he's fully healthy, it doesn't seem like there's a very clear, defined role for him. We didn't get a chance to talk to him at Dodger Fest. How does Dustin May play? out for this team and putting some baseball knowledge out there using your big big baseball brain how does that fit our work for dust of may and the dodgers in 25 well brandon gome said in

november that both tony gonsolin and dustam mary and we full go from the star spring training like they have gotten far enough far enough when their development and the progression uh from surgery that they are going to be full go so that means like dusta may does not have minor league often there isn't a spot in the bullpen even though obviously there's people and fans and who have speculated that oh is he better fit the bullpen i think it's still the best plan is to at least stretch him out of the starter and see where he's at he doesn't have options so he's basically locked into this rotation if he's healthy to start the season uh how how that sort plays out especially knowing where his workloads have been out for his career in fact that he's

never thrown i think more than i think 60 or something ending to the season you sort of have to see it play out over the course of a full season and sort of see where he's at health-wise but at least you start the season like i think what his role is does on opening day come to Tokyo come opening day against the Tigers. I think it's pretty clear what this role is going to be. He's going to be in the rotation, see where he's at health-wise, and see how he holds up, and see how the stuff bounces back. Because obviously the stuff is great,

but if he's coming off a second major elbow surgery, this one was a Tommy John revision along with a flexor strain. We'll have to see how it looks. But obviously, he's immensely talented, and I think the Dodgers have enough leeway where they don't necessarily have to feel like they are leaning on him heavily for 30 starts over the course of the season, not that he would ever get to that point, just coming off surgery.

But they don't have to lean on him too heavily, but they have to sort of see what he's looking like early on in the season. And of course, you are somebody who has been on the internet a time or two in his life. You see fans clamoring for Dustin May as the closer. You know, there's also a butt ton of talent when you're talking about the reliever, talking about the bullpen for this team, add Tanner Scott, you add Kirby Yates. and we know probably not necessarily a defined closer. They told us Tanner Scott's probably picking up the majority

or is going to get a lot of ninth inning opportunities. I mean, we got to a point, too, where we see this just come up this week. They DFA, somebody is talented as Ryan Brazier. I mean, we know there's no such thing as too much talent, but is there almost too much talent to go around for this team? And with that, how do you think the sort of ninth inning and the bridge to the ninth inning works for Dave Robertson Company this year. I don't know if it's too much talent,

but I think there's a cap on how much they can sort of keep adding at this point while still maintaining some level of flexibility to get you through a season. I think obviously you sort of saw that in the bullpen. Like they don't have any really optional relievers at this point. The only guy with options is Alex Vescia, who they're not going to send out. So to start the season, at least until show Airati's back in the rotation, you can go to an eight-man bullpen. Right now that you have a seven-man bullpen that's locked in.

barring injury or anything like that. So they don't really have a lot of flexibility there. Like I mentioned, it's difficult for them to get Kiki Hernandez on this roster because they don't have a ton of flexibility right now. So I think a lot of it's going to have to sort of come internally if they do have some sort of options. And obviously that farm system is really well regarded. We'll have to see what happens when you sort of have guys come up and see how they sort of magnify their roles and sort of expand their roles. But yeah, I mean, the talent is certainly high for this Dodgers team,

as you sort of would expect, considering how much they've spent and what the projection system sort of say and how this team looks on paper. A ambitious, well-intentioned, ferocious, and wealthy mother looks like in the black community. This Woman's History Month, the podcast, Keep It Posit, Sweetie, celebrates the power of women choosing healing, purpose, and faith, even when life gets messy. Love is not a destination. You have to work on it every day.

Keep it positive sweetie creates space for honest conversations on self-worth, love, growth, and navigating life with grace and grid led by women who uplift, inspire, and tell the truth out loud. I have several conversations with God, and I know why. It took 20 years. To hear this and more, listen to Keep It Posit, Sweetie, on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. It's the new me, and it's the old them. Everybody's on their journey. Your journey is different to this.

This Woman's History Month, the podcast, If You Knew Better with Amber Grimes, spotlights women who turn missteps into momentum and lessons into power. I think coming out of where I came from, I'm from the Bronx, I think I grew up really poor. I didn't know that then because I very much used my creativity to romanticize life.

And I'm like, my mom did a really good job of like, you step back and you're like, whoa, we, I don't know how we made it. So a lot of my life was like built out of like survival to get to the next place. Like my drive, my like tunnel vision of like, I got to be better. I got to achieve this was off the strengths of like I want to make a better life for us. If You Knew Better brings real talk from women who've lived it, unpacking career pivots, relationship lessons, and the mindset shifts that changed everything.

Listen to If You Knew Better with Amber Grimes on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. I'm Daniel Jeremiah. And I'm Greg Rosenthal. And this is 40s and free agents. The games may be over, but the NFL never stopped. This is my favorite part of the calendar. Yeah, mine too, Greg, free agency, the combine, the NFL draft pro days, trades. This is where teams reshape their future.

This is where Daniel Jeremiah makes his money. On 40s and free agents, we break down every move that actually matters. From my draft evaluations, mock drafts, and team fits. To my top 101 free agents and how real rosters are built, cap space, contracts and all the tough decisions included. You got quarterbacks on the move. We got teams rebuilding. It's hope season.

Yeah, absolutely. It's hope season. We'll tell you what's real, what's noise, and what it means for your favorite team. Smart analysis, real conversations every week. I don't know about the smart, but definitely analysis. Listen to 40s and free agents on the IHeart radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Yeah, very, very good team, making a lot of fan bases, making a lot of, other teams owners maybe upset, jealous, whatever the word you want to use.

We saw the athletic publisher report about what's coming out of the MLB owners meeting. Some teams maybe kind of trying to push for salary cap. Do you think this is something that the reality is Dodgers brought this aboard? Everybody's getting louder and louder about what they've done the last two off seasons. Are they kind of at the forefront of maybe, highly, unlikely, but maybe a salary cap coming to Major League Baseball. I don't think players would ever go for a salary cap. I think that's just a line that they're not going to cross.

I think the thing is, like, there isn't a salary cap, but there is right now. There really is. The way the owners treat it is it is a salary cap, with exceptions like the Dodgers, because it's not a hard cap, but you see teams that are not willing to go over the luxury tax threshold or certain levels of the luxury tax threshold or they have to try to stick under. The Dodgers have done this in the past, too. they've tried to duck under they tried ducking under a couple years ago obviously weren't able to do it but they wanted to duck under to reset their penalties before show hey otani's side obviously

they're in a position where they are making enough money that they're willing to keep swallowing the extra tax that when it comes to every single signing and you're sort of figuring that out but other teams are not obviously not spending within a hundred million of the cap certain teams are not spending within a hundred million of the lecture tax threshold obviously a would probably have to come with the salary floor but even then like where where would you set this cap or like it just seems like obviously it's one of those things that owners in baseball will always sort of talk about wanting to have but it's just so difficult to see them implement it because they you already kind of have something that serves the same function you don't you see teams that are not willing

to go over the luxury tax the team like Houston maybe isn't willing to keep going at this point because they want to kind of reset things and you sort of see decisions made with that mind but you see the Dodgers obviously like they just keep spending and obviously like you mentioned the Ryan Brazier trade a couple of questions ago like that actually wound up being a pretty big trade for the Dodgers that was a trade not a waiver claim or not a release and a free agent signing

because the Dodgers don't just save the $4.5 million on Brazier but you also save close to like $10 million in terms of luxury tax and all the total layout. So obviously those these are kind of the ideas the Dodgers are sort of having to deal with when it comes to making decisions to keep at when you sort of sign a guy for four and a half million you're really signing him for 10 million but the guy's only getting four and a half million but they're ignoring that because they're making enough money to make up for it but i i just see this as such a unique case that one a salary cap won't be and two i don't know how effective it would even be especially starting that CBT that new uh luxury tax not luxury tax sorry CBA in uh 0.27 sorry a lot of hyphenate yeah there's definitely a lot of less There's a lot of words involved when you're talking about this kind of stuff.

And I agree. I mean, I think the thing that makes it so difficult is, is the players just aren't going to go for it. The union is not going to go for it. And you need baseball players to play Major League Baseball. And, I mean, we're seeing how long it takes some, there's still so many free agents out there, how long it takes somebody like Pete Alonzo to get a job. You have Alex Brighman out here trying to get six or seven years, which he's probably never going to get.

But they're never going to allow, you know, limited. money making for themselves, which is totally said in a very professional and smart way. Dodgers got good. Other teams in the National League West, other teams in the National League, other teams all around got better despite so many un-signed free agents. In your opinion for the Dodgers this year, who is going to be the biggest competition in the National League? I think just considering what they did this off-season in addition to what they were,

I'd say the Arizona Diamondbacks. Obviously, the Padres, I think you talked to a lot of Dodgers people last year. They thought the Padres were the best team in that postseason was field, including the Dodgers. They thought the Padres were a better team. They were the team that sort of pushed the Dodgers in different ways. Their pitching staff was deeper. Their lineup was just as deep. Their bullpen was nasty.

But obviously, Dodgers rally back win that series. And then you see the Padres haven't done anything this winter. They don't get Rookie Sasaki, which probably was their best avenue to being able to sort of take a leg up. awesome pieces. And obviously they're still very talented. I fully expect them to be in the postseason race, but you look at the Arizona dimebacks. They scored most runs in baseball last year, and they add Corbyn Burns on the pitching front, sort of supplement things. You sort of look at them, and they are a very well, like they're a well-oiled machine when comes to baseball, like their team, how they sort of play. They have a style that's very aggressive, very annoying for teams to play

against. I think Dodgers said that even before dimebacks really made this turnaround. They were just a pesky team to play against and the East Horsi. Now they've supplemented that with a lot of talent. Their bullpen obviously was a big issue last year. That's still a major question mark, but you look at them on paper.

That's probably the team in the division at least that has stood out the most to me for competition for the Dodgers. Yeah, again, we saw this team. We've talked about it on the show. We saw this team play as well as they did in the postseason probably because they actually had to play

for something down the stretch. And you've covered this team now for a while. And you saw, I mean, 22 entered that postseason flat, 23. I mean, it's not necessarily flat, but there were some issues now actually seeing this team have to play something for something the same way they did in 21. The rest of the league, the rest of the division, being better and getting better helps this Dodgers team, a leaps and bounds. Final thing. I wanted to ask before we let you get out of here and probably continue your packing for a month and a half away from your house. Who is, in your opinion, the biggest X factor for this Dodgers team in 2025?

I don't think there's an answer that isn't Shohei Otani every year. So I think the non-shoe-Ho-Ho-Tani sort of division because, O'Atoni specifically this year because he's coming off shoulder surgery and elbow surgery. He's returned to the mound. He just impacts so much, especially if he is able to get back to sort of what he was offensively last year, but also in 20203 as just the two-way player. That was, he was incredibly dominant that year before he injured his elbow again. So if he came back to what he is, in terms of like the ceiling of this Dodgers team, obviously the ceiling is the world tiers, but like how good and dominant this team can be in the regular season all the way through, I'm very curious to see like what kind of role Rookie Sasaki can be and how good he is off the start. off the jump.

Like if he is a guy who's sort of fielding things out the first few months, like that's not going to sink or swim the Dodgers season. But if he comes out, hits the ground running, and is a sort of top tier front level, you can start postseason game level pitcher from the start and is as dominant as his talent suggests he can be, then all of a sudden you're looking at the ceiling of this Dodgers team for this year and you're thinking about what this team can be historically

and what it can sort of mean throughout the World Series. And also what it means for years to come, just because this is an older team, and then Rokisaki is 23 years old. And you're looking at all of a sudden you have a 23-year-old pitcher, who's one of the best pitchers in baseball. That's an exciting thing for what this next stage

for the Dodgers looks like, even beyond Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman's time of the team. So what I'm hearing is there's a chance, and the Dodgers are going to be good for a very, very long time, and we are looking forward to checking out your coverage of this team all season long. That is Fabian Ardaia. I appreciate you joining me.

If you guys want more Fabian, he just looks like he did a lot of work on it, did a deep dive of all the pitching options, all of the position player options that are entering camp with this team. So guys do check that out at the athletic. Give him a follow on the social medias and all that kind of stuff.

But Fabian, appreciate you joining me, man, and looking forward to seeing out there in spring training. Of course. Thanks for having me. right now. All right, guys, let's get into Last Licks. Thanks again to Fabian for joining, but I want to tell you guys once again about Paisley. She is a one-year-old Ozzy mix. She is chipped. She is vaccinated. She is house trained, and she is going soon for her spay. She is also, as you guys can tell, that are watching. Very, very adorable and cute. She will be available for adoption as soon as she's all healed up from that spay. From that spay. So please check out Gidreysgarden. for more information, ping Alana, slip into her DMs, ask her about Ozzie, or any ways that you can help support Gidreys guardian. Your guy's help goes a long, long way, I promise you that. Before we get out of here, one final baseball thought for the road. I'm sure some people who are active on the, on the internet, on the line, what I was going to say for some reason, saw this.

Listen, we're talking about somebody's X factor, Fabian's X-Factor being show, Hey, O, Otani. We're talking about global sensation. We're also talking about this. We got snow hay. That's us. That's Snow Hey, Otani. He's looking good. It was a sculpture, a snow sculpture of Shohei and, of course, the world famous great boy, decoy featured at the Sapporo Snow Festival in Japan. If you're talking about seriously a global superstar, you got to look at both those guys there, Shoahe Otani and Decoy. You got to love that kind of stuff. But, um, You know, I don't want to see snow. I want to see spring training. I want to see palm trees, cactus trees, dirt, baseball's being thrown around. Spring training's here, Dodgers family. And it is a good time to be a Dodgers fan. Thank you guys for tuning in. Check me out later on my All Dodgers YouTube channel. I will be live at some point today. I haven't thought that much about it. But if you subscribe and hit that bell, you'll know when I'm live. But again, thank you for watching. Thank you for listening. If you listen on the podcast side of things, we'd appreciate it. If you rate it. and review the show, like this show on YouTube, subscribe, share it with your friends, share it with your family, share it with your dentist, all of those spots, really, really help us out. Alana will be back on Monday, and we will be welcoming Dodgers, President of Baseball Operations, Andrew Friedman, should be a good one.

Appreciate you guys watching, and we'll see you in the next one. Bye! Peace to the planet, Shalameen, the God here, and listen, We are back. The Black Effect Podcast Festival is back in Atlanta on April 25th at Pullman Yards. Yeah. And the full lineup is nuts. We got the Gritchen Age podcast,

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And I'm like, who is this person? Welcome to the Boys and Girls podcast. Arranged Marriage is basically a reality show and you're auditioning for your soulmate. And who's judging? Only your entire family? I sacrificed myself to this ancient tradition, hoping to find love the right way.

And instead, I found chaos, comedy, and a lot of cringe. Listen to boys and girls on the IHart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. The human body is a beautiful machine. And keeping it running, it means understanding how it actually works. Which is why this podcast will kill you is doing a multi-part series on sleep. What it's for, why our bodies don't follow neat rules, and why modern life is not helping. When you consider what we know about sleep in humans, there's one rule that comes out.

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