The Dodgers have struck a one-year deal with righty Joe Blanton, Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reports on Twitter. He’ll earn a guaranteed $4MM in the agreement, per the report.
Blanton’s new deal includes some incentives as well, Ken Rosenthal of FOX Sports adds on Twitter. He stands to earn $250K bonuses at the fifty and sixty-inning threshold, and another $500K if he can make it to seventy.
The 35-year-old Blanton had long been a durable, back-of-the-rotation starter. But his career was at risk of stalling out after a string of rough seasons; indeed, it seemed at one point he might be retiring and he never pitched in the majors in 2014.
2015 proved a revelation for the veteran hurler, though, as he put up a sparkling campaign while working primarily from the pen for the first time in his career. He was good for the Royals and even better after being acquired off of the waiver wire by the Pirates. All told, Blanton spun 76 frames of 2.84 ERA pitching with 9.4 K/9 against 1.9 BB/9 to go with a 48.6% groundball rate.
Los Angeles intends to utilize Blanton in the pen, of course, with Dylan Hernandez of the Los Angeles Times suggesting (Twitter link) that he may function as a long man. As Hernandez notes, it makes particular sense to have an effective, multi-inning righty given the large number of southpaws in the Dodgers’ rotation.
WTF!!!!!
huhhhhhhhhhhh…WTF???????
Haha
He had a lower ERA as a reliever last year than Jansen.
He pitched 76 innings last year. His care ERA is 4.44, not worth 4 mil IMO
care?
Probably meant career
Mack22 probably means career ERA….but he’s still a moron. He didn’t notice that Blanton was a highly effective relief pitcher last season.
His era as a starter was huge especially after his time w/ the Angels. He has rebounded and settled into a good reliever. He had good splits vs RH batters last season.
Joe Blanton had a 2~ ERA in 2015. He’s a reliever now and not a starter. 4M for the Dodgers is nothing. Teams like the Dogers, Yankees, etc does not matter how much you’re spending per year, but how long you’re spending. 4M on a one year deal is very good for a team like the Dodgers.
A very solid signing. Hope he can help the Dodgers out of the bullpen.
Doing what? He can’t pitch for chit!
I think you are having trouble doing your homework. Look at what he has done with the pirates, then come back with a valid argument.
EXACTLY!
Doing what? He sux!!
With PIT 1.57 ERA, 2.11 FIP, 34.1 innings, 39 K’s, 9 walks
Weren’t some of those walks IBB?
Stop trolling dude even if your serious your annoying and not to mention dead wrong, 4 million is chump change to LA so he’s a solid signing for a bullpen that needs some help
Way to go there ! Now don’t let facts or statistics get in the way of the words coming out of your mouth.
Agreed. Could be a decent piece to pair with Howell in the 7th-8th inning. Not like they broke the bank.
Does anyone know what the Dodgers are thinking with all these signings of mediocre pitchers.
He’s a decent pitcher.
“all these signings of mediocre pitchers”
Who?
Blanton had a 2.04 ERA as a reliever, and who else did they sign thats not good?
Blanton has one decent year (out of the bullpen in 2015) in the last 7 or so years. In my book that’s a mediocre pitcher.
He’s a reliever and for the Dodgers it doesn’t matter. He produces? Good, stay in the pen. Doesn’t produce? Enjoy your one year salary then cut him and find someone else to try to fill the role. Simple.
probably quantity over quality – think 2015 Red Sox
Exactly.
Fills a long relief role especially if they are considering moving wood. Not a bad signing since he will probably not be an integral piece.
Huh. Blanton’s previous career with the Dodgers was only 10 games in 2012. I thought there was more. I guess I confuse him with Brad Penny.
Lock him in the pen toss the key
Blanton was absolutely solid as a Pirate last year, was as versatile as the team needed him to be, and all around was a fantastic acquisition. I know he struggled in years prior to 2015, but a year away from the game and then moving to the bullpen was just what the doctor ordered. All I know is I would have been pleased to see him in Pittsburgh again for 2016, although I can understand the Bucs not paying him $4 million for a year. I wish him nothing but success in LA.
Here’s the thing about “cupcakes” (A’s fans nickname for him due to his girth at the time). He was a serviceable starter in his youth, prone to the long ball, but would give you a lot of innings. He was notorious for getting lit up in his second or third time through a lineup. Coming out of the pen as he is now, his stuff plays much better, fastball up a tick or two, with lots of sinking action. I think he’s still got a few good years, used correctly, and can be a nice middle relief arm.
So a guy does not pitch in MLB for a year then comes back at age 34 and lowers his ERA to a career low, only 3rd time in his entire career allows fewer hits than innings pitched, career high in K’s per 9 inns, career high in K’s per walks, career low in WHIP, and lowers his BAA for all of his pitches — and Dodgers pay him a guaranteed $4MM plus incentives — LOL! Fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me!
$4M is inconsequantial. People really need to stop acting like contracts of that size mean anything in large market budgets anymore.
it isn’t about the money
Forget the dollars, they are not a significant factor in signing role-players of this kind. Ask yourself instead how he fits into the 25-man roster and whose place he takes if any. That’s where I am left scratching my head. The Dodgers needed a middle reliever after releasing Nicosio (another head scratcher), but they were already setting themselves up to have Brandon Beachy slip into that role.
Beachy, Carlos Frias, Mike Bolsinger, Zack Lee, Ross Stripling, Jharel Cotton, et al are better options than Blanton.
Lee is a 4A guy the reason the Dodgers hung onto him was his huge signing bonus he’s not that good. Bolsinger is not going to provide you with those extended innings. He had trouble with the transition to the pen last year so he will probably start in AAA pen innings. Stippling and Cotton have a little more time to develop. I have a feeling Stripplin and Cotton are going to be transitioned to the pen. Frias is probably headed to the pen too. Nobody really knows what you’re going to get out of him. The money doesn’t mean much as a long man/mop up guy he can easily be dfa when everyone is ready. All those players have options left. Blanton is probably just taking the place of Ravin who throws hard but could never find his control.
Depth.
A player functions as depth only if the team can keep him on the 25-man roster or he can be designated. What the signing of Blanton means for Beachy is if he pitches well in spring training, and a roster spot isn’t open for him on the Dodgers, that he will be granted free agency and end up someplace else.
Once again, Beachy has minor league options. He doesn’t have to be on the 25 man roster.
Once again, not as a practical matter. Explained below.
Which now raises the question of why they signed Brandon Beachy.
Beachy is a starter. Blanton is a full time reliever now.
Yup the BlueSkyLA moron doesn’t get it. haha not surprised given all of his previous comments on other topics.
I’m sure you are great fun at parties too.
Short of some kind of disaster in spring training Beachy has no place in the rotation. The only way he can be held as depth is as a middle relief/swingman the bullpen. Otherwise he would almost certainly end up being granted free agency before the start of the season.
Beachy has minor league options. He will be in the AAA rotation to get more reps.
Only theoretically. He was signed to a major league contract. If he declines designation he forfeits the balance of his contract. Certainly he would decline designation if he is pitching well enough out of spring training to earn more than the $1.5M he is guaranteed by the Dodgers. If out of spring training he looks like he did last year (awful) he likely accepts designation. But then we don’t much care since others in the minors are probably going to be better depth candidates.
He can’t decline a demotion because he still has minor league service options. What don’t you understand about that?
mlbtraderumors.com/2015/08/brandon-beachy-clears-w…
The situation for him this year is the same. What don’t you understand about that?
Dude, they aren’t taking him off the 40 man. They’re keeping him on and outright him to the minors.
Yes he can. He signed a major league deal which affords him the right to decline a demotion. It has also been reported that he has an opt out. If he had signed a minor league contract he wouldn’t be able to refuse the assignment but likely still have the opt out.
Dude, the situation for him is the same as last year. He can refuse assignment to the minors at the cost of forfeiting his major league contract. The only reason he accepted designation last year is because obviously nobody else would want him for more than the Dodgers were already obligated to pay him. I assume you did not even read the linked article where this was clearly explained or you would not have said what you just did.
He signed a major league deal last year and spent time in the minors before being called up. So yes, the situation is the same.
The easiest way to say it is he has over three years of service which allows him to refuse assignment and become a free agent
Got it.
All rehab assignment starts. He was on the DL. Not activated until July, right before he made one of his two major league starts. But now you are apparently arguing just for the sake of it, facts not being important.
I first read that as, “Blanton is a full blown reliever now.”
Blanton was quite successful out of the pen in 2015, but $4m plus incentives seems a bit of a steep price to pay for him.
one season that appears to be an anomaly considering his performance in in last few seasons. For me, I would rather see the Dodgers have an open competition during ST amongst its young pitchers for that spot.
The young guy showed last year in AAA that they needed a little more seasoning plus you have to figure they want them stretched out just in case. I think it depends truly on Montas and Cotton and how they proceed they are great mid season pen additions but they’ve had success as starters enough to justify giving them a shot to stay in the rotation.
does he get a ring from the royals?
Think the Dodger are so pissed off about losing Grez their going to sign every pither in baseball available and forget about batting lmao
whos grez? Mark Grudzielanek?
Wayne Gretzky?
“elmayo”????…no Torta’s…..English Please!
Love this signing. Great pick up for the bullpen and if it fails they can cut him. End of story. Our rotation is actually better this year even without Grienke. Greinke is a beast but we get Ryu back, got Kazmir and that new Japanese pitcher. Kershaw, Ryu, Kazmir, Maede (can’t remember how it’s spelled lol) and Anderson with Wood going to the pen or being traded is a good rotation. It’s actually a stacked rotation and you never know when someone might get hurt but having 3 solid guys companies to one great one..I feel that’s a no brainer
Not a bad sign. In the west coast parks he should be pretty good., He recovered his penchant for pitching low in the zone last year. Cheap sign in my book.
Good luck with that , Dodgers. You just bought yourself the best mop-up man in baseball.