Despite a flurry of offseason acquisitions and Dodgers rumors aimed at stabilizing their pitching staff, the Los Angeles Dodgers once again find themselves facing a familiar and frustrating reality: a mound full of injuries and an uncertain road ahead.
Fifteen pitchers are currently on the injured list. That figure includes key arms such as Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow, and Evan Phillips—whose injury was initially pegged as minor, only to result in season-ending Tommy John surgery. It’s a cruel déjà vu for a team that suffered a similarly decimated pitching corps last season on the way to a World Series title.
President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman spared no expense over the winter, adding marquee names like Snell, Roki Sasaki, and Tanner Scott, along with veteran reliever Kirby Yates, in a concerted attempt to insulate the roster from another injury wave. But even with that proactive depth-building, the Dodgers now face another midseason stretch held together by bullpen grit and minor-league call-ups.
So, will the Dodgers strike big on the trade market again, as they did last year with deadline acquisitions like Tommy Edman, Jack Flaherty, and Michael Kopech?
Dodgers Rumors: Betting on Patience, Not Panic, Amid Another Injury-Plagued Summer
According to Los Angeles Times beat reporter Jack Harris, don’t count on it.
“Even if only half of the arms currently on the IL get back to where they were before, they could still have a pitching staff capable of contending for another World Series title,” Harris wrote. “Because of that, it seems unlikely they’ll make overly aggressive moves on the trade market leading up to the July 31 deadline.”
That logic may not sit well with fans hoping for another front-line starter or a replacement for Phillips in the bullpen. But after doling out over half a billion dollars across the past two offseasons—including massive deals for Shohei Ohtani, Snell, Glasnow, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto—the front office appears content to stay the course.
In other words, the Dodgers are placing their chips not on external reinforcements, but on the long-term return of their own stars. Ohtani, for instance, is still on track to contribute on the mound in 2026, while Snell and Glasnow are expected to be part of the stretch-run rotation. The team’s internal belief is that even a partial return to form from those currently sidelined could be enough to secure another October run.
The risk, however, is mounting.
L.A.’s bullpen currently leads MLB in innings pitched—a workload that’s unsustainable over the long haul. And while the team’s position in the standings remains strong, there’s a growing sense that one more major injury—or prolonged absence—could stretch this staff past its breaking point.
Names like Tomoyuki Sugano (Orioles) or Andrew Heaney (Pirates) have been floated as potential trade options, but a high-cost splash seems unlikely. With Friedman and his staff eyeing sustainability over short-term panic, the Dodgers appear ready to ride out the storm.
For now, the message is clear: the Dodgers are betting that what they’ve built is already enough. Reinforcements are coming—but they’re expected to arrive from the injured list, not the trade wire.
Whether that patience proves prudent or costly won’t be fully known until October.