The Dodgers' 2016 offseason will be remembered for losing starter Zack Greinke to a division rival, rather than reloading a rotation with serviceable arms.
It is, however, an offseason the clubhouse, including general manager Farhan Zaidi is comfortable with.
"I guess my counter to that would be look at the Royals rotation," Zaidi told the Los Angeles Times. "They went all the way."
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Bay Area and California sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
[PAVLOVIC: Pence shows he's all the way back with two-homer night]
Zaidi is of course referring to the 2015 Kansas City Royals, which won the World Series with Johnny Cueto headlining the rotation, while being surrounded by starters Edinson Volquez, Chris Young and Yordano Ventura.
The Dodgers this offseason added two arms in Scott Kazmir and Kenta Maeda to support their frontline starter.
"The improvement-from-within argument doesn't always resonate well as an off-season storyline, but those are often the ones that play out best over the course of the season," Zaidi added.
San Francisco Giants
Clayton Kershaw stands out in the group of Los Angeles starters, boasting three Cy Young Awards, ranking first in the Major Leagues in several pitching categories.
The five-time All-Star reacted to the Dodgers' offseason, and remained down the middle with his comments.
"When you are a player, you have the luxury of not looking at all sides of things," Kershaw said, chiming in on the discussion. "You don't have to worry about depth, you don't have to worry about your minor league organization, you don't have to worry about prospects, all you have to worry about is the team that is assembled and gets put on the field.
"I can only speak for what's happened since I've been here, and every single year I feel we've had the chance to win. That's really, as a player, all you can ask for. You're not going to always agree with everything that happens with your team. There's always some things that I don't agree with. But once again, I have the luxury of not seeing the two sides of it."