Late in their process, the Dodgers turned away from their first pursuit, that being Baltimore Orioles lefty Zach Britton, and all but gave up on acquiring Darvish. Negotiations with the Texas Rangers lagged, presumably because the Dodgers clung to their top prospects, serving all those months that will follow October, they being right-handers Walker Buehler and Yadier Alvarez and outfielder Alex Verdugo.