LOS ANGELES -- Rival executives throughout the industry have spent weeks identifying the Los Angeles Dodgers as overwhelming favorites to land Tarik Skubal, the Detroit Tigers ace who seems more likely to be traded with each passing day. The uncertainty around Shohei Ohtani's pitching availability might have only increased that likelihood.
But Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman on Wednesday expressed confidence in Ohtani's eventual return to the mound. And though Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow are also working their way back from injury, Friedman downplayed the organization's overall need for starting pitching.
But that doesn't mean the Dodgers won't check in, at the very least.
"There just aren't that many star-level players in the game," Friedman said. "Any time one is available, we're always going to participate in those conversations. We've shown to be very aggressive in the past."
Friedman engineered trades for Yu Darvish in 2017, Manny Machado in 2018, and Max Scherzer and Trea Turner in 2021. In the years since, the organization has become increasingly more aggressive during the offseason in hopes of not approaching the trade deadline with an acute need and paying what Friedman described as "150 cents, 200 cents on the dollar" at midseason.
The Dodgers' preference is probably that Skubal, a pending free agent, isn't traded at all. It would mean he doesn't pitch for a National League contender and that the Dodgers don't have to give up premium prospects to prevent that from happening.
Over the past few weeks, the sentiment on that has vacillated. A Skubal trade seemed like a given at the start of June, when the Tigers were tied with the Colorado Rockies for the worst record in the major leagues. That was followed by a 22-12 run by Detroit that made rival execs believe Skubal would stay put. But the Tigers have lost four of their past five games, including Wednesday, when they blew a seven-run lead to the Baltimore Orioles, and now sit seven games below .500. It now seems more likely than not that Skubal will move ahead of Monday's deadline.
Most of the contenders -- the Tampa Bay Rays, New York Yankees, Atlanta Braves, Chicago Cubs, Milwaukee Brewers and Philadelphia Phillies specifically -- are expected to express interest. And though the Dodgers have downplayed their interest in recent weeks, their ability to offer the major league-ready outfielders and starting pitchers the Tigers would seek -- not to mention their desire to become the first NL team to three-peat as World Series champions -- make them a clear fit.
Skubal or not, though, the Dodgers seemingly expect Ohtani to be part of their rotation in October.
Ohtani has not pitched in a game since July 3 and has not thrown a baseball since taking part in a bullpen session in Philadelphia last Wednesday. Ohtani's left knee continues to be an issue. And during that last session, his right biceps, which he previously tweaked on a swing on July 3, also flared up. Ohtani revealed the discomfort in his biceps during his session with reporters Tuesday night, but Friedman downplayed its significance, noting that he has been throwing plyometric balls.
"If it weren't for the knee, he would be pitching right now," Friedman said. "He would be making his regular turn. We kept the arm going. Does he feel 100% in his arm? No. But neither does any pitcher in late July. This is around the knee and making sure that we can get it to a place where there's just no compensation. So exactly when that is, I'm not sure. But I feel confident that relatively soon, he's going to start getting out and start ramping up for catch play and bullpens and getting him back."
The Dodgers activated closer Edwin Diaz on Wednesday, as expected, one day after bringing back super-utility man Enrique Hernandez. Snell could be back next week, assuming his Wednesday rehab outing goes well. And Glasnow, who faced hitters at Dodger Stadium early Wednesday afternoon, will venture out on his own rehab assignment soon.
Ohtani, meanwhile, continues to serve as the Dodgers' designated hitter and leadoff man. Putting him on the injured list so he can further rest his ailing knee doesn't appear to be an option.
"I mean, talking to him, it doesn't bother him at all [on offense]," Friedman said. "You have to rely on doctors, images and player feedback. So the images are something that suggests we're good to proceed. His feedback is it doesn't bother him when he hits. It's much more about the landing and pitching."
Even without Ohtani, the Dodgers have a legitimate ace in Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who's making another Cy Young case. They have Justin Wrobleski, who made the All-Star team and has put up a 2.88 ERA in 112⅔ innings. They have Roki Sasaki and Emmet Sheehan, who have shown flashes of potential. And they have Snell and Glasnow, making a combined $56 million this season, on their way back.
The expectation is that Ohtani will eventually join them, though the timing on that is still uncertain.
"We're confident he's going to come back," Friedman said. "If there was something structural, then we would be much more concerned with that. But there's not. And the fact that it does keep improving suggests that we're on the right path and feel very confident that he will be back."