The Los Angeles Dodgers’ weekend brought both a clutch win and a curious roster move, underscoring the razor-thin balance between postseason security and regret. On the field, Will Smith’s home run helped lift Los Angeles over the Arizona Diamondbacks. Off it, the Dodgers made a quiet but strategic addition, signing veteran left-hander Andrew Heaney to bolster their depth for October.
According to MLB insider Jon Heyman, Heaney agreed to a deal that places him with Triple-A Oklahoma City, where he lives. Importantly, the agreement was finalized in time to make him playoff-eligible. “Andrew Heaney agrees to Dodgers deal. Heaney will begin in AAA Oklahoma City, where he lives,” Heyman wrote on X. “Has signed in time to be playoff eligible.”
Dodgers Sign Andrew Heaney To Third Stint With Team
Heaney, who has been in the majors since 2014, last pitched with the Pittsburgh Pirates, making 23 starts with a 5.39 ERA and an 84:46 strikeout-to-walk ratio. His tenure in Pittsburgh ended with a transition to the bullpen, a move Pirates manager Don Kelly framed as a chance to reset. “He’s totally open to it, helping the team in any way possible,” Kelly said on Aug. 16, per MLB.com’s Alex Stumpf. “Just trying to put him in a good spot, too, to help us win a game.”
That flexibility could prove useful for Los Angeles, though Heaney himself admitted this season has been far from his best. “I haven’t been pitching well, and we got some young guys that … deserve opportunities,” he said in mid-August. “I’ve been in the game long enough to know that you get opportunities that you earn, and I haven’t earned it.”
The Dodgers’ willingness to give him another shot highlights the organization’s long-standing approach: accumulate as much depth as possible before October. Yet the move was overshadowed by the player they didn’t sign.
Just as Los Angeles was putting finishing touches on the Heaney deal, former Dodger Walker Buehler was finalizing his own agreement with the Philadelphia Phillies. ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported that Buehler, released by the Boston Red Sox on Friday, joined Philadelphia on Sunday and will be eligible for their postseason roster.
Buehler’s numbers in Boston mirrored the uneven results he posted in 2023 with the Dodgers. He went 7-7 with a 5.45 ERA and 1.56 WHIP in 23 appearances. But his postseason pedigree remains undeniable: a 3.04 ERA and 114 strikeouts across 94.2 playoff innings. His October dominance was on display just last year, when he threw 10 scoreless innings between the NLCS and World Series, even volunteering to close out Game 5 of the Fall Classic.
That résumé sparked speculation of a potential reunion. As MLB writer Dusty Baker put it, the Dodgers could have “brought back Walker Buehler and told him to prepare to be a one-inning lockdown bullpen piece. Almost like it worked before.” Instead, the Dodgers passed.
Red Sox manager Alex Cora acknowledged the disappointment that defined Buehler’s Boston tenure. “It’s tough, but this is where we’re at,” Cora said. “I know it didn’t go his way, or our way. He expected more, and we expected more. … I still think he has stuff in the tank.”
The Phillies clearly agree, betting that Buehler’s ability to rise in October outweighs his regular-season volatility. For the Dodgers, the optics are trickier. Once again, they enter September atop the NL West—78-59 and in control of the division—but without a clear-cut ace behind their frontline arms.
Whether the choice to let Buehler walk was prudence or missed opportunity won’t be clear until October. Heaney provides a safety net, but his struggles this year raise questions about how much he can truly contribute. If Los Angeles faces Philadelphia in the postseason, the contrast could become glaring: one team taking a calculated gamble on proven playoff pedigree, the other choosing stability over risk.
For now, the Dodgers have depth, but not the reunion many expected. In a few weeks, we may learn if that decision will haunt them.
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