Dodgers prepare for a rocky road en route to the 2018 World Series

Can the Dodgers afford to lose the best pitcher on the planet to the DL for the third summer in a row?

The answer; it depends. What does it depend on, you ask? It depends on the front office, and it depends on Major League Baseball as a whole.

The Dodgers can’t do much about the lack of free agent signings, but they can do something about one free agent. It’s not an issue if your ace needs to sit out a few weeks, as long as you have another ace to back him up.

Whether or not that ace will be Yu Darvish is unknown. It shouldn’t stay that way for much longer, but the Dodgers need another starter. A lack of one will be one of the biggest roadblocks they’ll face this season.

Do I think the Dodgers should re-sign Darvish? Yes, I do, but will I be disappointed, or annoyed if they don’t? No.

Last season, the Dodgers proved something extremely important to themselves, to their fans, and to all of baseball for that matter. They proved that they can win without Clayton Kershaw and they can win the postseason games in which Kershaw never takes the mound.

That is one of the reasons they got to the World Series in the first place, but another summer without him may be a reason that they can’t get back there.

As for who will back Kershaw up as the Dodgers’ number two starter this season, there are a few options. When looking at the free agent market, Lance Lynn is a name that stands out. Of all the starters left available, the Dodgers probably have the best chance at re-signing Darvish. Should they not, though, Lynn or the Rays’ Alex Cobb are great options for LA.

This could be an issue. We’ve seen it the past two years, and the Dodgers have overcome it both times. They can play through a Kershaw injury, but things may not fall the same way this season.

It’s a risk the Dodgers don’t need to take.