Dodgers News: Exec Admits He Wishes LA Would Have Tried Harder for Proven Arm at 2023 Deadline

It just wasn't enough.

Dodgers front office executive Andrew Friedman expressed several regrets at the end of another disappointing postseason for the team in 2023. 

One of these mistakes came from the team's lack of starting pitching in the playoffs and part of that failure falls on Friedman's shoulders for a poor trade deadline. 

“Yeah, sure,” Friedman said when asked if he could have tried harder to acquire a proven arm at the trade deadline. “I think anytime you have the benefit of hindsight and how things play out, I think there are a number of things that played out this year that were unforeseen by us. We talked a lot about the need for pitching depth and how it comes up even more than what you anticipate. I think we also had a number of really talented young pitchers who we wanted to make sure and create some type of opportunity for, and we did. And I think they helped us in 2023. And they’re gonna help us a lot in 2024 and beyond. And I think it’s the challenge of sustaining success over a long period of time. We’ve talked about this a lot. The only way to do it is to incorporate young players onto the roster as you are growing and winning. And usually, when you do that, there are some lumps, but hopefully, the team talent around it is enough to withstand that.”

via Dodgers Nation, YouTube

Rather than chase Dylan Cease or even Jack Flaherty, Friedman opted to acquire Lance Lynn and Ryan Yarbrough as pitching options headed into October. 

A potential deal for Eduardo Rodriguez was in play but the Tigers' trade clause got exercised to spoil LA's dream of him in their rotation.  

Friedman already expressed a greater need for rotational depth ahead of 2024 so we'll have to see if he makes good on what's been empty promises since 2020.