"I don't really pay much attention to what they do"- D-Backs GM Mike Hazen unfazed by Dodgers' offseason splurge post Yoshinobu Yamamoto deal
Arizona Diamondbacks General Manager Mike Hazen looked on with glee during this year's NLDS. Despite being heavily unfavored, the Snakes swept the NL's only 100-win team, the Los Angeles Dodgers, en route to their World Series appearance.
Although the D-Backs were ultimately unsuccessful in their quest for the World Series, beating the Dodgers represented a significant triumph. However, due to recent moves, a similar result may be markedly more difficult for the D-Backs to pull off in 2024.
On December 21, the Dodgers agreed to terms with 25-year old Japanese pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Yamamoto's twelve-year, $325 million deal is the largest pitching contract in history, and comes mere weeks after Shohei Ohtani was inked to a record-setting $700 million over ten years by the Dodgers.
In response to the stockpiling of a divisional rival, Arizona Diamondbacks are keeping things in perspective. In a statement per D-Backs writer Jesse Friedman, Mike Hazen claimed that he "doesn't really pay attention" to what the Dodgers are doing, and prefers to stay focused on building his own team's success.
"D-backs GM Mike Hazen on the Dodgers' $1 billion-plus offseason: "I don't really pay much attention to what they do. We need to figure out what we're doing, how to make our team better, what we're going to do to be better than 2023. That's really what I'm focused on" - Jesse Friedman
Compared to the Los Angeles Dodgers, the D-Backs have had a relatively quiet offseason. The only move of note was their extension of Lourdes Gurriel Jr., who is in line for $42 million over the next three seasons with an option for 2027.
Mike Hazen's reply to the Dodgers' payroll situation is more elevated than the response of many others. The team has been repeatedly criticized for their deferral plan on Shohei Ohtani's contract, which will result in tens of millions in extra payroll space for the duration of the superstar's contract.
Mike Hazen's team has their own challenges and opportunities to deal with
In 2023, the Diamondbacks came farther than anybody would have expected. Tossing aside the Brewers, Dodgers, and Philadelphia Phillies before finally falling to the Rangers was as good a lesson as Hazen could have hoped for.
Financially, the D-Backs will never be on the same footing as the Dodgers. However, if they can exhibit the same determination, grit and drive that they did last season, then perhaps it will once more be the Snakes who emerge from the NL West victoriously.