Dodgers notes: Tarik Skubal, Cody Bellinger, Shohei Ohtani

Spring training is not too far in the distance with the Dodgers having their first cactus league game in seven weeks against the Angels. With plenty of star talent still available for the taking both in the open market and on the trade block, the Dodgers are playing with precious time to complete their offseason agenda before the team reports to Glendale.

During the winter meetings, the Dodgers were able to land in one of the top free agent relief options in former Mets closer Edwin Díaz, and during the meetings, the Dodgers and Detroit Tigers reportedly had the pieces in place for a Tarik Skubal blockbuster, per David Pingalore at KTLA. Of course, nothing has since come into fruition thus far, but Jesse Rogers at ESPN doesn’t rule out the idea of the Dodgers going after Skubal at the trade deadline.

If the Tigers fall out of the race, L.A. simply makes too much sense as a landing spot for Skubal — that is assuming he’s not traded in the coming weeks.

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For an outfield group that possessed two of the worst defensive corner outfielders in baseball last year, the Dodgers have been hesitant to pry one of the better outfield names on the open market. The Dodgers have been attached to players such as Kyle Tucker and Cody Bellinger, and Athletics broadcaster Jenny Cavnar believes that the Dodgers are the biggest threat to the New York Yankees’ pursuit of reuniting with the 2019 NL MVP.

“I think their biggest competition is going to be the reigning World Series champions… I think the west coast can maybe lure him back. That could be a very interesting fit if the Dodgers decide to pursue him.”

One thing to certainly expect for the 2026 season is Shohei Ohtani finally showing off his talents on both sides of the field throughout the entire duration of the regular season, doing so for the first time as a Dodger. Manny Randhawa of MLB.com puts a full season of two-way Shohei near the top of his list of things to get excited about for this upcoming season.

In 2026, it appears that all systems are go for the two-way sensation, meaning we’ll get to see Ohtani both on the mound and at the plate in a Dodgers uniform for a full season for the first time. Remember: just when we think we’ve seen it all from Ohtani, who very well might be the greatest baseball talent to ever live, he always seems to do something new to leave us awestruck.