Can the Cubs possibly out-muscle the Dodgers in free agency?

The Los Angeles Dodgers have become a juggernaut over the last decade or so (although, one with the same number of World Series championships as the Cubs during that span) – so hearing they’re ready to bust out the checkbook this winter is hardly something that gives me warm fuzzies.

The Dodgers shelled out $275 million on payroll this season, a figure topped only by Steve Cohen’s Mets. Of course, neither of those teams wound up winning the pennant, but it shouldn’t negate the standing of these teams in the league pecking order, either.

Cubs, Dodgers both looking to add a top-shelf shortstop this winter

With a ton of high-dollar contracts coming off the books, the Dodgers will once again be players in the deep end of the free agent pool, specifically when it comes to the loaded shortstop class, which includes Trea Turner, who spent the last year-and-a-half in LA after coming over in a trade with the Nationals in the summer of 2021.

Regardless of whether it’s turner or someone like Carlos Correa, it seems pretty likely the Dodgers will be in play for one of the four shortstops this winter – which could complicate the Cubs’ efforts in a pretty significant manner.

The Dodgers are the full package. They’ve won the NL West in nine of the last 10 seasons, call Southern California home and have the perfect combination of financial firepower and player development. Put all of that together and it’s difficult to make a convincing pitch to a free agent they have their sights set on.

That’s not to say the Cubs don’t have a lot to offer, because they do. But Chicago is still in the midst of a rebuild, coming off a year in which they finished 17 games out of first place. The Dodgers seemingly spend at will and won 111 games this year, a franchise record.

Maybe Chicago can tap into Turner’s preference to be back closer to the East Coast in free agency. One thing’s for sure, though. These two clubs are destined to run into one another as they make their cases this winter and we’ll all be watching to see how it plays out when they lock horns.