The offseason began at 6 a.m. PT on Thursday, and nine Dodgers were already free agents. Tarik Skubal heads the list after a season that split between Los Angeles and the Detroit Tigers, while Miguel Rojas appears on it even as he is retiring as a player and moving into a role in the Dodgers front office.
That makes the first morning after the World Series less about celebration than roster math. The list also includes Kiké Hernández, Alex Vesia, Evan Phillips, Blake Treinen, Brusdar Graterol, Kris Bubic and Eric Lauer, giving the Dodgers an immediate set of decisions on both the rotation and the bullpen. Skubal is the name that jumps out because he was the headlined prize from August 2, when he came to Los Angeles with River Ryan, Zyhir Hope and Brady Smith going back to the Detroit Tigers.
His final stretch with Los Angeles was strong enough to explain why he leads the search. Skubal posted a 2.61 ERA in 10 starts down the stretch, struck out 70 and walked 13 in 62 innings, then allowed three runs with 14 strikeouts and four walks in 11 innings across two postseason Game 1 starts. He beat Atlanta in the National League Division Series and took a 2-1 loss in Milwaukee in the National League Championship Series, which is why his name sits above a free-agent list that also features relievers and depth pieces.
Not every one of those names sits in the same category. Skubal, Eric Lauer and Kris Bubic are not eligible to receive a qualifying offer from the Dodgers because they switched teams during the season, which narrows the front office’s options before any negotiations even start. Lauer arrived from the Toronto Blue Jays in May and settled in quickly, making six innings in seven of his first 11 games, while Bubic came over on August 3, joined the Dodgers in September and gave them 5 2/3 scoreless frames in six appearances before the postseason turned rough. Bubic had been an All-Star starter with the Kansas City Royals in 2025, but he also missed three and a half months on the injured list that year with elbow soreness and then shoulder soreness on rehab.
Vesia gives the list its cleanest human detail. He led the Dodgers with 72 appearances, finished with a 2.64 ERA and 2.68 xERA, and said on October 15 that Miami took a chance on him in the 17th round before the Dodgers liked what they saw. He added that the people around him shaped his career and that the standard in the room pushed him to be great every day. Treinen has been with the Dodgers for seven years, but each of the last five years of that run has been interrupted by injuries, including two and a half months missed in 2026. That is the shape of the offseason now: a roster that must decide which arms to keep, which to replace and whether the group that carried it to Wednesday’s finish still fits the next one.
