The Los Angeles Dodgers are on the verge of creating a work stoppage according to detractors and naysayers. Yet, Andrew Friedman doesn’t see it like that.
The Dodgers president of baseball operations opened up about the narrative the team is ruining baseball in an interview with the Los Angeles Times.
The Dodgers have, of course, both won the offseason and the World Series in each of the past two years. They landed superstars, outfielder Kyle Tucker and relief pitcher Edwin Diaz, this offseason in free agency, despite defeating the Toronto Blue Jays in seven games in the World Series in November.
The Dodgers are the overwhelming favorite to again to become the first team to three peat since the 1998-2000 New York Yankees.
Andrew Friedman is ‘Not Focused on’ Naysayers
Friedman was asked directly about the narrative the Dodgers are ruining baseball by LAT staff writer Maddie Lee. He pulled no punches with his response.
“Obviously [I] see it, come across it, hear it quite a bit,” Friedman said. “But weâre just not that focused on it. Weâre a really healthy organization, and the partnership we have with our fans is our guiding light.
“Weâre doing everything we can to put a team out there that our fans really connect with, and that they feel that partnership with all that they pour into us, and donât really think about it in any other terms.”
The Dodgers have led MLB in attendance, both home and road, the past two years and were the first team since 2009 to surpass the 4 million mark in home attendance last season — even though they finished fifth in baseball regular-season wins.
Friedman is focused on duplicating that feat and winning more again in 2026.
“Obviously, thereâs a lot of narratives that get extrapolated,” Friedman said. “But our sole focus is on ourselves and the partnership we have with our fans and the rest of it to us, itâs kind of just noise.”
The Dodgers Want to be ‘A Destination’ for Star Players
The Dodgers are willing to spend money on free agents, but that’s only a part of the Friedman and the Dodgers’ goals.
“Our biggest, most overarching goal is to be a destination spot, where our own players donât want to leave, where players on other teams are looking longingly, because we feel like championships fall out of that,” Friedman said. “By having the right environment, having the right culture, that helps your star players want to stay, it helps in the recruitment of others.”
Of course, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts helps foster that culture, since he’s guided them to three championships and nine division titles in the 10 years at the helm — the Dodgers have been to the playoffs every year.
But even though the Dodgers are the model MLB franchise — and superstars have openly expressed their envy of LA’s operation — Friedman still won’t rest on his laurels.
“Itâs like a living organism that we have to continue to foster and nurture and develop,” Friedman said, “and we hope weâre way better at it five years from now.”
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