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Part of the reason Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman has downplayed the need for starting pitching (read: Tarik Skubal) is because the Dodgers believe they’ll have their rotation of aces back at full strength by October. That’s indeed looking more likely, even with Shohei Ohtani’s status as a pitcher uncertain. Blake Snell (elbow surgery) will make his final rehab outing Tuesday with Triple A Oklahoma. Tyler Glasnow, who has been out since early May with reoccurring back spasms, will start a rehab assignment Tuesday with Class A Ontario. He’s scheduled to throw two innings.

Having both Snell and Glasnow back in the rotation arguably improves the team more than any non-Skubal addition. Still, with Skubal talks expected to heat up any moment, the Dodgers will be in the thick of those conversations.

It’s true that Friedman despises making major deals at the deadline — when the cost of acquiring meaningful talent is at a premium. It’s also true that a projected playoff rotation of last year’s World Series squad — Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Ohtani, Snell and Glasnow — doesn’t leave much room for Skubal.

Friedman downplayed concerns over Ohtani’s sore knee and bicep, saying he was confident his two-way star would begin throwing bullpens soon. But if Ohtani, who hasn’t pitched in a game since July 3, faces any setbacks — or the Dodgers deem his bat more important than his arm in October — wouldn’t they need reinforcements?

For as much as the Dodgers try to avoid major mid-season acquisitions, if they’re going to make one, it’s going to be for a player that significantly improves their odds in October. They have a third straight World Series to win, after all. Only one such player exists this deadline, and that’s Skubal.

“I think our mindset is always, and we’ve talked about this, there just aren’t that many star-level players in the game,” Friedman said to reporters Wednesday. “Any time one is available, we’re always going to participate in those conversations.”

Skubal, the reining two-time AL Cy Young winner, certainly qualifies as a star player — and he’s available. The Dodgers will be involved in the bidding, even with Snell and Glasnow inching closer to returns.