Even a $200 million payroll doesn’t guarantee a World Series win, most teams can attest to that. Unfortunately for the Dodgers, they are paying a lot of players, a lot of money, and the last two years have been bounced from the NLDS and NLCS, both times by the St. Louis Cardinals. The Dodgers had two options, either stop playing the Cardinals, or figure out what needed to be done. So, Los Angeles started from the top, relieving Ned Colletti of his duties as the club’s president of baseball operations.
The Dodgers have hired the former general manager of the Tampa Bay Rays, Andrew Friedman to be their next president of baseball operations. At 28, Friedman became the GM of the Rays and helped rebuild the team. In 2008, the Rays went to the World Series but lost to the Phillies; Friedman was just 31 years old but was already one of the brightest minds in baseball. Friedman’s best asset is his ability to stretch a dollar, utilize what he is given, and evaluate talent. Since their inaugural season in 1998, the Rays have had just six winning seasons, all six have come in the last nine years Friedman was the GM, and that’s not by accident. If he can win with a payroll that is significantly less than most teams, imagine what he is capable of with a large payroll.
Friedman is taking Ned Colletti’s job, however Colletti will remain with the club as the senior advisor to owner Stan Kasten. Colletti has done an alright job over the last nine years he’s been the GM of the Dodgers, but nothing more than alright, which is more than likely the reason that he was relieved of his duties. With a payroll that big, the Dodgers need someone who is going to be much better than just alright. Fortunately for them, Friedman is the perfect fit for the job, his comprehensive knowledge on baseball and finances, along with the resources he has in Los Angeles, could be trouble for the rest of the MLB.
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