Sure, fat bucks for the roster construction is one thing, but the Dodgers do appear to have the flair for the fancy. Then there is, obviously, their commitment to give the best amenities to their players. So when the Guggenheim ownership group came into play in 2012, they had a vision, and Janet Marie Smith came in as the executive vice president of planning and development. And the work she put in over the course of the decade and more has now left one of the newer additions to the Dodgers in sheer awe.

Within just a few months of taking over the job, Smith had circled out a focus area, and that happened to be the clubhouse, which she described as a “1962 locker room.” So the work began to chop up the shared batting cage and food room and the dilapidated dressing room. What was unveiled four months down the line was a space fused with modern technology and comfort. The “clubhouse was amazing,” is what Freddie Freeman said after seeing it, and well, Skubal’s reaction wasn’t far off as well.

“I can’t believe how big that is,” a stunned Skubal said about the clubhouse, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today. “I went to look for the hot tub, and wound up in the batting cage.”

The Dodgers acquired Tarik Skubal ahead of the trade deadline by sending three top prospects to the Detroit Tigers. The Dodgers’ sprawling clubhouse surprised Skubal, who had only played for the Tigers before. However, the Dodgers did not always have this stunning clubhouse from the get-go. Rather, it came at the cost of $100 million.

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In 2024, the Dodgers undertook the challenging task of renovating their clubhouse in Chavez Ravine. And just ahead of the 2025 season, the organization unveiled the new infrastructure. Janet Marie Smith said that Team President Stan Kasten had called it a “generational upgrade.”

The clubhouse project had been in development for roughly two years, with Marie Smith gathering feedback from Dodgers President of Baseball Operations Andrew Friedman, his front-office staff, players, coaches, and nearly everyone who regularly works in the clubhouse.

To expand the clubhouse, the organization had construction crews gut Dodger Stadium and dig below the foul lines in left and right fields. Following the renovations, the Dodgers players got a more spacious locker room, along with upgraded weight training and food rooms. They also added a second batting cage, giving players more space to practice. It was reportedly Shohei Ohtani who suggested adding a second batting cage.

“It’s hard to put into words,” Max Muncy said about the renovated clubhouse at the time, per the LA Times. “You get so used to something being there, and you come in, and you have no idea where you’re at. It’s really cool. It’s what you’d expect out of the Dodgers.”

Along with their massive three-story clubhouse, Skubal is equally impressed with the Dodgers’ players-only aircraft, per reports. All Dodgers players travel by plane, which helps with team bonding. Managers and coaches use separate aircraft.

The Dodgers have multiple facilities to wow the 29-year-old Cy Young winner. Yet his love for Detroit is making him dream of a reunion with the Tigers.

Tarik Skubal would love to reunite with the Tigers

Tarik Skubal is a rental on the Los Angeles Dodgers’ roster. The Dodgers will probably pursue Skubal when he becomes a free agent at the end of the season, where he is expected to secure one of the highest contracts in MLB history, and the Dodgers are the perfect candidate to offer that. They are notorious for signing the best players using sky-high deals, which is one of the reasons why MLB owners are pushing for a salary cap.

However, amid all this and within a week of joining the defending World Series champions, Skubal is longing to be back in Detroit. He went as far as to admit that he hopes the Tigers take part in negotiations when the offseason begins.

“I would love to play my whole career in Detroit,” Skubal said, per Pardon My Take on X. “I would love to. And hopefully, those negotiations pick back up in November once the playoffs are done. And we’ll see where that goes. Hopefully, they’re involved with everything; I would love to return. I’ve got nothing but good things to say about the City of Detroit and the manager, the coaching, the staff, the trainers, the teammates; it’s tough.”

Skubal has been emotional about leaving the team with which he made his MLB debut in 2020, and his recent remarks make it all the more evident.