The Dodgers have spent aggressively to acquire players from other organizations this summer, but at some point in the coming months they could turn their attention to a player they drafted and developed themselves: reigning Cy Young Award winner Clayton Kershaw. The left-hander told Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times that he would consider a long-term extension if the Dodgers wish to discuss one.
"Yeah, sure, I'm always open to talks," Kershaw said. "I've had a great time here. I love the guys and I love everything about L.A."
Last offseason the sides agreed to a two-year, $19MM deal that covers Kershaw’s first two arbitration seasons (2012-13). They discussed the possibility of a four-year deal with a fifth year option before settling on two years, according to Hernandez. The 24-year-old Hendricks Sports client will be eligible for arbitration one more time following the 2013 season and eligible for free agency following the 2014 season.
Dodgers GM Ned Colletti said in May that he doesn’t intend to negotiate a longer deal with Kershaw during the regular season. Since then, the Dodgers have spent more than $430MM in player acquisitions, Hernandez writes. It won’t be surprising if Guggenheim Baseball Management, the team’s new ownership group, works aggressively to keep Kershaw in place long-term.
Kershaw has followed up his Cy Young season with a similarly dominant year. He leads National League pitchers with 186 2/3 innings, 183 strikeouts and two shutouts. His ERA has risen but remains under 3.00 at 2.84 and he continues to limit walks (2.1 BB/9). At this point in Kershaw’s career, he seems well-positioned to obtain a contract worth in excess of $100MM.
Well he better get an extension while the Dodgers are still solvent!
LOL, you haven’t seen anything yet.
Dodgers haven’t even gotten their new TV deal money, which should start coming in after next season.
Once that money kicks in, expected to range between $250 to $425 million a year, you can safely expect $200+ million a year payrolls from the Dodgers.
Unlike the Steinbrenners, the Guggenheim Baseball Group does not appear to be against paying luxury tax.
Better check out luxury tax implications before counting on maintaining a payroll over 189m over more than just a hand full of seasons.
NYY own YES network, Boston owns NESN and when those 2 organizations decide to shed some to get underneath for a t least a year (NYY) and reset the taxes paid, then the fines get stiff.
Yeah I don’t know all the details, but the more often the threshold exceeded, the more puntative the tax is. I believe the Yankees are paying a rate of 42.5% this year and that will rise to 50% in 2013 if they are above $189 million.
I guess though if you look at it this way, if the Dodgers have a $219 million payroll, a 50% tax is “only” an extra $15 million. Not sure that would stop them.
I don’t think it will stop them. Listened to an interview with Kasten yesterday and he said that the luxury tax on payroll was not going to be something that would deter the new owners from spending.
He also intimated that the new TV deal would be a big key in helping to ramp up payroll. He said the Dodgers were happy with their current TV partner, Fox, but also played it coy about what the long term plan was for the Dodgers’ TV deal.
If I were a betting man, I would bet the Dodgers are going to start their own regional network, like the YES network and also like the Lakers’ new network which will debut on Time Warner this year, I believe.
If that happens, then Dodgers will likely be making around $300 to $425 a year just from the network and not including any other sources of revenue (ie. ticket, parking, concessions, souvenirs, MLBTV.com).
AND, don’t forget the Dodgers long-term plan of building an entertainment venue like the one that is by the Staples Center. Who knows how much revenue that generates for the Dodgers.
Bottom line: I think the new owners will be making so much money they won’t care about a 50% luxury tax.
Thumbs down from a Giants fan there I guess.
Yeah, I know the rules. The max luxury tax rate is 17.5% of every $1 (because its the first year the Dodgers will exceed the threshold) over the threshold, which will be $189 mill in ’13.
So, say the Dodgers’ payroll gets to $220 mill next year. Then, the Dodgers would be $31 mill over the threshold and would owe around $5.27 mill, for a total payroll obligation of $225.27 million.
Rates gradually increase to a max of 50%. I don’t think these owners are going to balk at paying $20 mill in luxury tax on a payroll of $230 mill.
The new owners are going to be flush with cash starting in 2014.
I’m pretty sure Guggenheim Baseball has done there homework. Thanks though.
Once they sign the TV deal they will probably stop spending so much. They needed more big names to negotiate a higher bid for the TV deal. Once they have that they might run the dodgers like an actual business and try and get the highest profit margins. Besides who the heck wants to go to Chavez Ravine. THat place is scary and old and tons of traffic.
LOL, they are NOT going to stop spending.
If anything, long-term they will probably have a Top 5 farm system and that will allow them to develop more players from within and offset the costs of the big ticket players they either sign through free agency or trade for.
Honestly, the Dodger roster seems pretty set in the outfield and at the corners (I expect HanRam to eventually shift to 3B).
The big need will be filling out a rotation around Kershaw. That could be trickier with the departures of De La Rosa and Webster, but the Dodgers still have Zach Lee and Chris Reed AND still drafted and signed some quality arms in the draft and international market this year (first time in quite a while).
My sense is that the Dodger farm system will be stocked full of talent in a couple years with Zack Lee, Chris Reed and Yasiel Puig likely being the next wave of talent to make their way from the minors to Dodger Stadium.
If he signs an extension it will be scary to think what the Dodgers will have committed to only four players (him, Crawford, Kemp, Adrian) in each of a few years down the road. Dodgers FO: Ah, screw the luxury tax. Win, baby win!
yes, “scary” but isn’t that a relative expression? Consider the current TV deal my Bums have in relation to the payroll. Now look at the never before seen revenue level of the looming deal. That deal alone will cover the payroll with any tax and still leave a lot for stadium operations.
What is not in there from any of us yet are the mundane issues of debt service, long needed stadium udpates/changes as well as the day to day needs of running the Dodgers. So, of course it’s a lot to spend but combined the 3.5M-4M+ fans the team will draw every year moving forward money is not ever gonna be an issue with this team.
One thing Magic brings to the game is he knows about the idea of paying luxury tax. The Lakers have been over the limit pretty much every season since he came to the team and started “winnin’ time”. Magic is the only player I remember who tore up his deal in order to give the team even more room under the rules in the NBA. The baseball guys in the new ownership group are going to lean heavily on Magic in this area. I think, for the first time, I see what Magic brings beyond his amazing attitude to WIN. Magic knows about teams working with salary caps & penalties iin real world terms, well as “real world” as these wages/saleries can be considered, lets just say he knows it first hand in practice. For all their bluster the Yankess don’t really get that part. Or maybe it’s that the Yankess have been so up there for so long their “war chest” is not as prosperous as once upon a time. Not like the Yankees are hurting though.
last the Dodgers, Yankees and other teams going over cap is actually good for other teams as it is simply an added level of revenue sharing which should be part of the game to help keep it more interesting.
Oh, and I agree, screw the tax, and I hope we stop hearing about it, I just want to be able to enjoy baseball again before I croak.
cripes that was looong…d’oh…I’ve been mute to long!
He isn’t going anywhere. I see 6 years $160 million.
Too much, considering he is only approaching 4 yrs of service time. 5 years, $100m (2014 – 15m, 2015-18 – 20m per season, 2019 – $25m team option with $5m buyout)
Sabathia has the highest salary of any pitcher at 23 million. 6/160 averages nearly 27 per year. I think Kershaw’s deal will probably average around Sabathia’s when it’s all said and done. I’d guess an extension of 5/115 or so
“Wait… there’s huge gobs of money going around? Yeah, I’ll take some of that.”
Eleventy billion dollars!
Kershaw and Bumgarner, are going to duel forever and ever and ever…and I’ll be happy as a peach.
I’m sorry Clayton, CC and Beckett took all of our moneys!
Not really. Dodgers still have plenty of money for Clayton.
However, I wouldn’t be shocked if Clayton signs for at what Sabathia’s AAV currently is.
Kershaw really like’s L.A. and I don’t know that the Dodgers have to break the bank to get a long term extension done.
A Matt Cain-esque deal of 5 years and $115 mill wouldn’t surprise me. Given his ability, accomplishments and age, that would probably represent a hometown discount for the Dodgers. He definitely would command more than that on the open market.
How the heck do the Dodgers have MORE money to resign him?
No joke!! if they been throwing crazy money all over the place, I would be open to an extension too!