How they were built: Dodgers

MLBPipeline.com is breaking down how each of the playoff teams was built, looking at the composition of projected Division Series rosters.

The Dodgers have won four straight National League West titles, giving them the longest streak of postseason appearances in their storied history.

Overview The architects NATIONAL LEAGUE Chicago Cubs Los Angeles Dodgers New York Mets San Francisco Giants Washington Nationals AMERICAN LEAGUE Baltimore Orioles Boston Red Sox Cleveland Indians Texas Rangers Toronto Blue Jays

They’ve spent lavishly to do so, setting a big league record with a $257.3 million payroll in 2014 and shattering that mark with $291.1 million a year ago. The final figures aren’t in for 2016 yet, but Los Angeles’ Opening Day payroll of $249.8 million was the highest in baseball.

That outlay of cash might create the impression that the Dodgers have built a consistent winner by going crazy on the free-agent market — and that impression couldn’t be further from the truth. Los Angeles has fewer free agents on its projected Division Series roster than any club.

Instead, the Dodgers have tapped the international market more than anyone, parlayed first-round picks into a pair of indispensable players and assembled the majority of their roster via trades.

Here’s a look at how each player on the Dodgers’ projected Division Series roster was initially acquired during his current stint with the club:

HOMEGROWN Player, how acquired, year:Kenley Jansen, Int’l sign, 2004Clayton Kershaw, Draft, 2006 (1st round)Pedro Baez, Int’l sign, 2007Joc Pederson, Draft, 2010 (11th round)Corey Seager, Draft, 2012 (1st round)Ross Stripling, Draft, 2012 (5th round)Yasiel Puig, Int’l sign, 2012Julio Urias, Int’l sign, 2012Kenta Maeda, Int’l sign, 2016

The Dodgers project to have just four drafted players on their playoff roster, but they’ve made them count. Their best pitcher and best position player were first-round picks.

Clayton Kershaw was the seventh overall pick in 2006 and signed for $2.3 million, a franchise Draft record at the time. He reached Los Angeles less than two years after he turned pro and quickly established himself as the best pitcher of his era. He has won three Cy Young Awards and an MVP award, not to mention four NL ERA titles and three NL strikeout crowns.

The 18th overall choice in 2012, Corey Seager signed for $2.35 million, still the franchise standard for a drafted position player. While he didn’t advance quite as quickly as Kershaw, Seager was starting in the postseason for the Dodgers last October as a 21-year-old and is a …

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