At the end of July, the Los Angeles Dodgers are overwhelming favorites to win the World Series. They are also the team most likely to add the best pitcher in baseball.

According to ESPN insider Jeff Passan, the Detroit Tigers will trade ace Tarik Skubal by the deadline on Monday at 6 p.m.. He adds that most teams anticipate the Dodgers will be the team that acquires him.

"[The rest of MLB] is all almost resigned to the idea that the Los Angeles Dodgers are going to get Tarik Skubal," Passan said Wednesday.

"That's my guess, [that Skubal is traded to the Dodgers], yes," Passan added in a Threads Q&A this week.

The prediction markets tell a similar story. Kalshi gives the Dodgers a 49% chance of trading for Skubal before the deadline. The market also gives them a 53% chance of having Skubal on their roster by Opening Day 2027.

Bob Nightengale reported Thursday that the Dodgers are Skubal's "preferred destination" once he reaches free agency after the season.

Translation: It would be surprising if Skubal is not a Dodger by Monday night.

We understand the argument that no one superteam can "ruin" baseball due to the inherent randomness of the sport. Fair enough. Still, it doesn't bode well for the competitive balance of a league when the only real argument against the Dodgers winning a third straight World Series is that randomness could intervene.

Here's what the Dodgers' postseason rotation could look like if they acquire Skubal:

• Yoshinobu Yamamoto
• Tarik Skubal
• Shohei Ohtani
• Blake Snell
• Tyler Glasnow
• Justin Wrobleski

The Dodgers already have the best rotation in baseball. Adding Skubal, whom many consider the best pitcher in the sport, could mark the greatest pitching rotation ever assembled.

And that's before considering the lineup.

The Dodgers already own the best record in baseball and the league's best run differential (+156). They've done so despite extended injuries to Snell and Glasnow. However dominant they've looked through four months, they should be notably better by October.

Traditionally, dynasties are good for professional sports. Casual fans tune in hoping someone finally knocks off the team at the top. But that only works if fans believe someone actually can.

That's the difference between these Dodgers and, say, the Kansas City Chiefs.

The Chiefs won three Super Bowls in five years. They fielded the less talented roster in at least four of those Super Bowls.

No such dynasty exists for the Dodgers. They are clearly better than everyone else – and getting even better.

Consider this: all 29 other teams would improve by adding Skubal. Yet the team that needs him the least is considered the overwhelming favorite to acquire him. That's not good for the sport.

The intrigue would be greater if a contender like the Brewers landed Skubal, narrowing the gap between themselves and Los Angeles. (Don't put too much stock into regular-season records. Milwaukee finished with a better record than the Dodgers last season, yet wasn't remotely competitive in the NLCS.)

For all the issues the NBA has faced over the past several years, competitive balance has quietly become one of its strengths. Eight different franchises have won the past eight championships. Looking ahead, several teams have a realistic chance to win the title next season.

That is also true for the NFL and NHL. Not MLB, where it feels like the Dodgers and the slim chance that randomness intervenes.

ESPN play-by-play announcer Joe Buck, a lifelong baseball fan, agrees. During an interview this week with Jayson Stark and Doug Glanville, Buck said baseball has a competitive imbalance that doesn't exist in the other major sports.

"When I'm doing an NFL season, at the start of the season, who knows who's going to end up in the Super Bowl," Buck explained.

Baseball has built notable momentum in recent years. The pitch clock has improved the viewing experience. The league has recognizable stars. The on-field product is strong. However, MLB risks undermining that progress if one team continues separating itself while much of the league sits on the sidelines, content to prioritize profits over building a competitive roster.

The Dodgers deserve no criticism for taking advantage of the system. Their ownership is doing exactly what fans want owners to do: spend money to win. The problem is the system itself. Too many clubs ask fans to support the product while refusing to invest enough to compete with the sport's elite.

If correcting that imbalance requires a lockout and meaningful structural changes after this season, perhaps it's warranted.

There's a reason spoilers are met with such disdain. Fans don't want to know the ending before they watch the story unfold.

If/when the Dodgers land Tarik Skubal, a spoiler alert for the ending of this MLB season may be apropos.