The Dodgers are doing what the Dodgers do: staying in the conversation, staying patient, and refusing to pretend that the winter market has to be solved in a single afternoon. Brandon Gomes made that much clear in Las Vegas on Tuesday, saying the club has remained in contact with Tarik Skubal’s camp and expects to meet with him at some point. That is not a finished deal, but it is not idle background noise either. It is a heavyweight club keeping its name in the room for the top free agent on the board.
And that matters because this is not a roster in obvious panic mode. The Dodgers do not have gaping holes to fill, but they are not in the business of waiting around and hoping the margins take care of themselves. Their most pressing needs are the bullpen and the bench, which is exactly why the Skubal conversation feels so revealing. When a team already strong enough to avoid desperation still keeps circling an elite arm, it says plenty about how seriously it is treating the market.
Business as usual, with a very expensive name in the frame
Gomes called it “business as usual,” and that is probably the most Dodgers line imaginable. No frantic declarations, no dramatic promises, no public countdown to a blockbuster. Just a steady willingness to keep talking while the front office figures out what the winter should look like. Gomes also stressed that a lot of this is about continuing to see what it all looks like, which is another way of saying the club is weighing fit, need, contract, and timing all at once.
That is where Skubal becomes such an intriguing test case. Gomes was complimentary in every direction, describing him as super talented, really projectable, and fun to watch throw. He also said the Dodgers love the player and the human, and that he fit in great in the clubhouse. That is not accidental praise. It is the kind of language clubs use when they are genuinely open to making something happen, even if they are still far from a final decision.
Still, there is no point pretending the details are simple. Gomes was blunt about the uncertainty, asking what the team needs, what the contract looks like, and where Skubal ends up before adding the most honest line in the whole exchange: “I don’t know.” That is the reality of MLB free agency. The player is available, the interest is real, and the cost is not yet defined.
The clock is already ticking toward Dec. 1
There is also the larger issue hovering over all of this: the collective bargaining agreement expires on Dec. 1, and a lockout is expected to go into effect. That is a brutal bit of calendar reality for a market that thrives on momentum, meetings, and leverage. The Dodgers can talk now, and clearly they are talking now, but the whole offseason is being framed by a threat that could freeze the sport before it really gets moving.
So yes, the Dodgers are still in contact with Tarik Skubal’s camp. Yes, Gomes expects a meeting at some point. And yes, the organization is treating the offseason like a normal winter even as the sport drifts toward another round of labor uncertainty. That is the Dodgers’ edge, and also the burden of being the Dodgers: every conversation is a possibility, and every possibility comes with the expectation that they might actually follow through.
For now, the message is simple. They like the pitcher. They like the person. They know the market will be fierce. And in MLB free agency, that is often enough to keep a story alive long before anyone actually signs anything.
