LOS ANGELES -- Sunday began with reports that the Los Angeles Dodgers might be intensifying their efforts to acquire Texas Rangers ace Yu Darvish, a development at which conventional wisdom generally scoffed. After all, L.A. already had six capable starters, including the very best in the game, and its staff led the majors in ERA. Besides, Darvish is only a rental.

Then Clayton Kershaw exited his start with tightness in his lower back, Kenley Jansen blew a three-run lead, and Brandon McCarthy landed on the disabled list.

That's how fragile this whole thing can be.

Jansen, his ERA still only 1.49, will be just fine. McCarthy, dealing with a blister, shouldn't be gone long. But Kershaw's back injury is concerning, both because of recent history and overall importance. The Dodgers initially diagnosed their ace with tightness on the right side of his lower back, but they might not have a firm grip on the extent of the injury for another week or two.

Here's all they're certain of right now: Kershaw will be put on the 10-day DL, and by the time he gets back (whenever that is), the non-waiver trade deadline will have come and gone.

It appears that the team's front office now faces a fascinating dilemma that seemingly revolves around whether it should do whatever it takes to land Darvish, perhaps the only available starting pitcher who qualifies as a legitimate upgrade.

The Dodgers have depth, at least. The group of McCarthy, Alex Wood, Rich Hill, Kenta Maeda and Hyun-Jin Ryu has combined for a 35-19 record with a 3.55 ERA, a mark that would trail only the Arizona Diamondbacks for the best starting-pitcher ERA in the majors.

The Dodgers, collectively, are 68-31 and 10½ games ahead of the rest of the National League West after they recovered to win 5-4 in 10 innings Sunday.

One could make a strong case that Kershaw could miss the rest of the regular season, and the rotation would still be good enough to win a fifth consecutive division title.

"You saw it last year," Jansen said, alluding to when the Dodgers went 38-24 in the two-and-a-half months Kershaw missed because of a herniated disk. "It's the same pitching staff, even better."

But this isn't about the regular season for the Dodgers. It's about thriving in October and claiming the franchise's first World Series title in 29 years.

So much about what has transpired -- from Wood's dominance to Pedro Baez's emergence to Cody Bellinger's prowess -- points to this being one of those special seasons in Los Angeles, the kind that hardly ever comes around, the kind a front office must take full advantage of, regardless of what prudent thinking might suggest.

Previous reports have said that the Dodgers have been unwilling to part with their top outfield prospect, Alex Verdugo, or their top pitching prospect, Walker Buehler, which falls in line with the principle beliefs of president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman.

Baseball's postseason can be something of a crapshoot. That's what happens when you take a sport with a 162-game regular season and boil it down to five- and seven-game series. Weird things happen, and the best team rarely wins it all. That's why forward-thinking executives such as Friedman prefer to build for multiple 90-plus-win seasons and fight the urge to go for it all in one year -- a decision that tends to sap farm systems and restrict payrolls.

But the Dodgers are operating under unique circumstances, with a deep farm system, a near-limitless budget and, now, an injured ace. Besides Darvish, who will be a free agent this offseason, there doesn't appear to be another top-shelf starter who would be worth it for the Dodgers. Sonny Gray? He has a 4.80 ERA over his past 37 starts. Jason Vargas? Jeff Samardzija? Jaime Garcia? Not so much.

The Dodgers have the ability to get Darvish and a shutdown reliever -- perhaps Zach Britton or Addison Reed -- if they really want to. They would have another ace and a dominant back end of the bullpen, and then they would simply hope for the best with Kershaw.

Before Saturday's game, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts talked about the difference between a roster that is set up to win in the regular season and a roster that is primed to win in the postseason. He says he believes they are "two separate discussions, one to win the long but also the idea to have the pieces to win 11 games" in the playoffs, with the latter requiring a team to be a little top-heavier.

"I do believe we have the unique, in-house pieces to win the season as well as 11 games in October," Roberts said. "Which is really rare, in my opinion."

But now Kershaw's back is acting up, and suddenly, Roberts' pitching staff seems a little bit vulnerable.