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The Los Angeles Dodgers are back-to-back World Series champions and just shored up a loose end, signing former New York Mets closer Edwin Díaz to a three-year, $69 million deal. So, in theory, maybe the Dodgers don’t need to sign anybody else.
But this is what Dodgers president Andrew Friedman gets paid to do: improve the roster by any means necessary.
Here are three free agents the Dodgers should still pursue after securing Díaz.
Pete Fairbanks boasts a career 3.19 ERA. (Photo by Dustin Satloff/Getty Images)
2025 stats: 2.83 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 59 strikeouts, 27 saves, 145 ERA+, 1.2 wins above replacement (60.1 innings pitched)
Díaz gives the Dodgers their new closer, but their bullpen still needs to add depth pieces capable of pitching in the ninth inning. Enter the 6-foot-6 Fairbanks.
The towering right-hander has been among MLB’s best right-handed relievers over the past six years. Fairbanks, who leans on his four-seamer and slider, traditionally logs strikeouts at a high clip and has been the Tampa Bay Rays’ primary closer of late, but he has also thrived in a setup role. Fairbanks evades damage, is a proven commodity and would give manager Dave Roberts another pitcher with the ability to close should Díaz struggle.
What’s more, a bounce-back season from Tanner Scott – who led MLB with 10 blown saves in 2025 after signing a four-year, $72 million deal – would give Los Angeles a lethal back end of the bullpen. Mind you, this was a unit that was tied for 20th in MLB in both ERA (4.27) and WHIP (1.33) in the regular season and was assisted in the postseason by rookie starter Roki Sasaki moving to the bullpen.
Signing Fairbanks would put a turbulent 2025 campaign for the Dodgers’ bullpen in the rearview window.
Of the 280 MLB appearances that Nick Martinez has made, 129 of them have come as a reliever. (Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images)
2025 stats: 4.45 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, 116 strikeouts, 103 ERA+, 2.3 WAR (165.2 innings pitched)
Martinez would be a slick addition to the Dodgers’ pitching staff.
The veteran right-hander, who pitched in Japan from 2018-21 after four seasons with the Texas Rangers (2014-17), has experience pitching as both a starter and reliever in MLB. Last season, Martinez was primarily a starting pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds, but he was moved to the bullpen on a full-time basis late in the season and excelled, recording a 2.35 ERA over his last 11 appearances (15.1 innings pitched); of his 40 overall appearances, 26 of them came as a reliever.
Martinez is just one season removed from posting a career-best 3.10 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and four wins above replacement in 2024. By the way, he consistently throws six pitches: cutter, four-seamer, changeup, sinker, curveball and slider.
Martinez can begin the 2026 season out of the Dodgers’ bullpen as a long reliever, and when injuries present themselves in the starting rotation (Sasaki, Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow were among those who missed time due to injury in 2025), he can take an injured starter’s spot. What team wouldn’t want that type of versatility?
Harrison Bader has posted 51 defensive runs saved in center field over his nine-year MLB career. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Getty Images)
2025 Stats: 17 home runs, 54 RBIs, 3.9 wins above replacement, .277/.347/.449 slash line (448 at-bats)
“Darth Bader” would be an impactful reinforcement for the Dodgers’ positional depth chart.
With Michael Conforto a free agent, Bader would fill the roster void that the former’s potential departure creates. As for what Bader brings to the table, he’s as clean as any player in the sport in the outfield grass. He covers a lot of ground, seldom commits errors and is a vacuum in center field. With the bat, Bader has a crisp swing from the right side, and he’s coming off hitting a career-high 17 home runs in 2025.
Last season was the first time that Bader, a primary center fielder, got extensive playing time at the corner outfield spots since 2018, making 57 starts in left field and five starts in right. Teoscar Hernandez is likely still in right field next season, but while Andy Pages has primarily played center field, he has also started a considerable number of games at both corner outfield positions.
Bader could start in either center or left to open the season and, at the bare minimum, improve the Dodgers’ outfield defense by adding another credible player to the mix. On the versatility front, Hernandez is just one year removed from being the Dodgers’ starting left fielder and Tommy Edman occasionally bounces out to center field.
Of all these options, Bader and the Dodgers are a great match.
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