LOS ANGELES — Tanner Scott arrived at Dodger Stadium on Thursday with his wife, Maddie, and son, Bo – the latter sporting a toddler-sized No. 66 Dodger onesie with “SCOTT” across the back and greater interest in the trucks crawling all over Dodger Stadium this winter than anything dad had to say on stage. It hardly looked like the final straw in the ruination of baseball. “We’re solely focused on the Dodgers and making this team as good as we possibly can,” Dodgers general manager Brandon Gomes said when asked about the prevalence of sky-is-falling commentary after the latest acquisition in possibly the most aggressive offseason by a World Series winner. “Our ownership group has been incredibly supportive of continuing to put back into our fans, who have done nothing but support us and come out and see us. So we’re solely focused on ‘How do we make our team better?’ and give back to the fans who have nothing but come out to see us.” The Dodgers have made their team better this offseason with the additions of pitchers Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki, outfielder Michael Conforto, infielder Hyeseong Kim and, finally (for now), Scott whose signing was officially announced Thursday. Add in new contracts for outfielder Teoscar Hernandez, reliever Blake Treinen and utility man Tommy Edman and the moves have driven the Dodgers’ projected payroll for 2025 to the unprecedented $380 million neighborhood – more like $320 million when you take into account the deferred money that has annoyed so many around the game (and could become a thorn in the side of Collective Bargaining Agreement negotiations when the CBA expires following the 2026 season). Scott’s four-year, $72 million contract is not outrageous for a left-hander considered one of the best relievers in baseball, the best available on this year’s free-agent market. But when combined with their other moves over the past two winters, it produced a steady drumbeat of discontent with the Dodgers’ ability – and willingness – to extend themselves financially to add good players to a roster already loaded with talent. “Let’s talk about that for a minute, because I think there are two elements to answer that question,” Dodgers team president Stan Kasten said of the criticism of the Dodgers’ free-spending ways. “First is competitively. As all of you know, the way our game is structured, right now we’re 3-to-1 against to win the World Series. That’s 70, 75 percent likely that someone else will win the World Series. So obviously it hasn’t damaged the game competitively. “On the entertainment side, which is what we are, it’s really good when there’s one beloved team by their fans who come out in record numbers, leading all of baseball in attendance, while that same team can be hated and lead baseball in road attendance. That’s a win-win for baseball. The fact that this is also really contributing to the enhanced globalization of central baseball around the world (with the Dodgers’ acquiring three Japanese stars). It’s a win-win-win. This is really good for baseball.” Kasten acknowledged that “other teams, markets, cities just don’t have the same kind of opportunity we do” – an advantage that exploded with the signing of Ohtani to the most team-friendly contract in the history of sports. The Ohtani phenomenon was worth millions in revenue to the Dodgers’ bottom line last year – an advantage no other team has. “I don’t know. But it has paid off tremendously,” Kasten said when asked if Ohtani had enabled this continued accumulation of talent by the Dodgers. Related Articles Los Angeles Dodgers | Swanson: Shohei Ohtani’s Angels’ tenure a cautionary tale for Roki Sasaki Los Angeles Dodgers | Dodgers aced Roki Sasaki’s homework assignment to land another offseason prize Los Angeles Dodgers | Dodgers 2025 spring training preview: catchers Los Angeles Dodgers | Alexander: Every Dodgers signing brings more whining Los Angeles Dodgers | Dodgers keep adding – 2-time All-Star reliever Kirby Yates is next With Ohtani’s $700 million contract last year leading the way, the Dodgers committed more than $1 billion to new players last winter. This winter, the total is a modest-by-comparison $452 million. Money is the top item on almost any free agent’s wish list. But the Dodgers are being accused of ruining baseball, in part, because they signed Sasaki to a contract that includes only a $6.5 million signing bonus and the prospect of minimum salaries in his first three seasons. More than money is leading players to don Dodger blue. “Obviously players want to be in a place that they know that ownership is committed to winning,” Gomes said. “And then on top of that, we take a lot of pride in our family programs, the culture, how we treat our players, doing everything first class, and having that reputation throughout the game of, we’re going to take care of our players and their families, is important to us. And we know that if our players can focus on just the field and not have to worry about things off the field and know that they’re taken care of, that’s just one less thing that they need to worry about, and they can pour more energy to the field. “So it’s a little bit of everything – of weather, stadium, fans, winning, culture. And we’re starting to see that really play out here as it’s built over the last few years.”