The Dodgers are champions once again.
Behind a dramatic game-tying homer in the ninth inning from Miguel Rojas and a superhuman effort from Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Los Angeles defeated the Blue Jays 5–4 in 11 innings on Friday night to clinch its second straight World Series title.
The Dodgers now have a chance to become the third franchise in MLB history to win at least three straight World Series championships, and the first since the Yankees from 1998 to 2000.
Looking at the Dodgers’ roster, the star core of the team will return in 2026. Tyler Glasnow, Mookie Betts, Blake Snell, Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman and Yamamoto are all signed well past the 2026 campaign.
The Dodgers will have six players hit arbitration this offseason, and they have a $10 million team option on slugger Max Muncy and a $3.55 million team option to potentially bring back Alex Vesia. But there are seven players whose contracts will officially expire once the offseason begins. Here they are:
Michael Conforto, OF
The Conforto experiment did … not work out in Los Angeles.
The Dodgers signed Conforto to a one-year contract worth $17 million back in December after he hit 20 homers for the rival Giants in 2024. In 138 games this year, Conforto batted just .199/.305/.333 with 12 homers and a 79 OPS+—the first time he logged a below-average OPS+ since 2016. Conforto was left off the Dodgers’ postseason roster and had to watch as Kiké Hernández and Alex Call took his spot in left field.
Miguel Rojas, IF
The Dodgers’ trusty veteran transformed from a bench player to a World Series hero on Saturday night, hitting the game-tying home run with one out in the ninth inning of Game 7.
Rojas, who will turn 37 in February, will hit the open market this offseason. Back in October, he announced plans to retire after the 2026 season and said he’d like to return to Los Angeles for one last dance. After his Game 7 heroics, how could the Dodgers consider bringing him back for another year?
Clayton Kershaw, SP
Kershaw won’t be back in 2026 because he’s finally hanging up the cleats.
Kershaw, one of the greatest pitchers of his generation, announced in September that he will retire after this season. What a way to go out—an 11–2 record and 3.36 ERA in his final season with a World Series title as the cherry on top. Across 18 seasons, all with the Dodgers, Kershaw registered a 223–96 record with a 2.53 ERA and 3,052 strikeouts.
Kiké Hernández, UT
On a roster full of superstars, Hernández has served as a utility player and culture-builder in Los Angeles for nine of his 12 seasons in the big leagues. Hernández batted .203/.255/.366 with 10 homers and 35 RBIs in 92 games last year, and he wasn’t any better in the playoffs, going 5-for-28 (.179) in the World Series.
As he hits free agency this offseason, Hernández might be the odd man out for 2026—especially if the Dodgers bring back Rojas for a utility role alongside Tommy Edman.
Andrew Heaney, RP
Los Angeles claimed Heaney after he was designated for assignment by the Pirates in late August. Heaney made just one appearance in a Dodgers uniform, allowing three earned runs in two innings. He was not a part of the Dodgers’ postseason roster, and at 34 years old, doesn’t seem like he’ll be back with the club next year.
Michael Kopech, RP
The Dodgers acquired Kopech at the 2024 trade deadline in the same move that landed them Edman. He’s been fantastic when healthy—1.54 ERA in 35 innings since the trade—but he hasn’t been healthy often. Kopech had two stints on the 60-day injured list this season alone and wasn’t healthy enough to crack the playoff roster.
Kirby Yates, RP
Yates was one of the top arms available in free agency last offseason, and he signed a one-year deal worth $13 million with the Dodgers in January. He was supposed to be a high-leverage option out of manager Dave Roberts’s bullpen, but instead, Yates was one of Los Angeles’s biggest problems.
In 50 appearances (41 1/3 innings), Yates allowed 24 earned runs on 38 hits and 17 walks—adding up to a 5.23 ERA and 1.331 WHIP. It was his worst full season of work since his third season in the big leagues in 2016. Yates, just like Kopech and Heaney, did not pitch in the Dodgers’ playoff run.