MLB Insider: Predicting the fallout if Los Angeles Dodgers’ collapse continues

Could Dodgers NLDS loss affect pursuit of Shohei Ohtani?

The Dodgers are going to pursue Shohei Ohtani. That’s been the worst-kept secret in baseball. Just how much that pursuit is impacted by his latest elbow injury remains to be seen, but it’s been abundantly clear for years that he’s a player firmly on their radar.

Let’s operate under the assumption that Ohtani will be the Dodgers’ No. 1 target. It’s unclear if he will choose the team with the highest dollar offer – it’s possible he goes to a place he’s most comfortable – but based on the reported list of teams that he considered when he was coming to MLB, it’s clear that he likes being on the west coast.

If the Dodgers add Ohtani, where else do they look? The starting pitching market is an obvious area of interest, and both Lucas Giolito and Jack Flaherty grew up together in that area. Could they look to add either arm? Left-hander Jordan Montgomery is an interesting potential target, especially with Julio Urias’ future in baseball in doubt.

But the Dodgers have little history of working with Montgomery’s agent, Scott Boras, and that could make him an unlikely target.

One thing we know for certain: the Dodgers’ offseason starts with Ohtani. They will look in the starting pitching market and attempting to re-sign J.D. Martinez should be another priority, though Martinez will surely be more expensive than his current one-year, $10 million contract.

But if they don’t land Ohtani, their offseason will surely be considered a failure.