The Los Angeles Dodgers and their $410.8 million Opening Day payroll for 2026 have received heavy criticism throughout the year, but there has been a recent surge due to the initial stages of collective bargaining agreement negotiations between team owners and the players association.
Manager Dave Roberts is aware of the critique being lobbed at the organization, but sees them as lazy because of the sole focus on the Dodgers’ payroll, according to Bob Nightengale of USA TODAY.
“My honest opinion is the majority of takes about the Dodgers couldn’t be more lazy,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts tells USA TODAY Sports, “that it’s just about the payroll. It’s about the draft. It’s about layering on where we pick in the draft annually. The player development. How we acquire international talent. How we perform consistently at the major-league level.
“I actually think it’s a competitive advantage in the sense that people feel that way, and not look at themselves in the mirror and see how they can operate things better. So that’s beneficial for us.”
A high payroll raises the floor of how good a team can be in any given season, but the ceiling is determined by an organization’s attention to detail in all aspects of baseball operations. That is especially true when measuring team performance over multiple seasons, and certainly when looking at the decade-long run the Dodgers have been on.
Properly assessing player value in contract negotiations, bringing in the right players, finding value whenever possible and building organizational depth, all of these aspects and more is what has set the Dodgers apart from other organizations.
To Roberts’ point, every organization has the capability to reach this point. Perhaps not right away or to the same extent, but gradually replicating some of the most attainable goals would be a good start.
For instance, every team has the capability to invest heavily in their player development systems. It would cost the fraction of signing an expensive free agent and have a larger impact over time.
However, there seems to be a severe lack of organizations willing to match the level of investment the Dodgers have made. Until that happens, L.A. will gladly watch as other teams try to compete against them with one hand tied behind their back.
Dodgers not worried about perception
Mounting criticism placed on the Dodgers reached a fever pitch during the offseason when they signed Edwin Díaz and Kyle Tucker to respective record-setting contracts. In the case of Tucker, his deal was reported as being the final straw for some team owners and painted as being the reason for a likely MLB lockout.
Max Muncy brushed off that narrative and Chicago Cubs’ Ian Happ also disagreed with the notion that Tucker’s contract would be the cause for a stoppage once the CBA expires in December.
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